Harry Potter and Hogwarts U
by zArkham
Summary: What if Hogwarts had to wait to start till student's were 18 when their magical cores matured? With magicals going to the Saint Schools for primary/secondary, they have a big lead on the Muggleborn in everything but magic. Follow Harry as he leaves Stonewall behind to enter into Magic where the rules seems stacked against the Muggleborn/raised. AU with alternative sortings. Harry/?
1. Unexpected Post

**DISCLAIMER THE FIRST: **_It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion. It is by the grace of coffee that thoughts acquire speed, the back acquires strains, the strains become a warning. The warning is that I make no money from this. It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion. _

**PITHY STATEMENT RELATING TO THIS CHAPTER**: "_If you do not expect the unexpected you will not find it, for it is not to be reached by search or trail_." **Heraclitus of Ephesus** – Greek philosopher – 535-475 BCE

**Last Updated**: 03-14-2014

**XxXxX**

**CHAPTER ONE – UNEXPECTED POST**

**XxXxX**

**#4 PRIVET DRIVE, LITTLE WHINGING – JULY 30****th**** 1998 – AFTERNOON**

Harry rinsed his hair and then turned the water from warm to hot. Even though he knew the chance of any of the Dursleys taking a shower later was low, heaven forbid he used up much hot water. Still, he always splurged a bit right before getting out of the shower.

The heat helped to loosen the tension in his shoulders. It had been a busy day at the Sainsbury Superstore and he still had a shift later that evening at the Egham Gas Works. The double-shifts at both his jobs was tough but he had been working feverishly for the last few years to build up a nest egg for the day he both dreaded and looked forward to.

That day was tomorrow. The day he turned eighteen. The day Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia had long told him they would finally be shot of him even if they had grudgingly said he could stay till the first of September. Even so, Harry wasn't taking any chances so all his plans had centered more on his birthday rather than the first of September.

Harry shut off the water and grabbed a towel and began to dry himself off. As he did so, for the millionth time wondered why his relatives had taken him in at all. Certainly Uncle Vernon had threatened him plenty of times with being dropped of at an orphanage. He'd even talked to Father Gordon at St. John of Rochester quite a few times about seeing if somehow the Church could take Harry off their hands.

Harry looked at the blurry image of himself in the foggy mirror. The image smirked back at him as he thought how Father Gordon probably didn't want to inflect Harry upon his Church given how much the man loathed him. Like his Uncle Vernon, Harry wasn't sure where the hatred came from other than it was there.

Harry finished up in the bathroom, careful to make sure it was as tidy as it had been when he entered. If he didn't, he might find himself locked out of the house again. While he had a key to the front door, Uncle Vernon had installed a second key lock so he could lock Harry out if he was angry at him for some slight or another.

After toughing out a few cold nights, Harry had finagled some padding and an old Army salvage sleeping bag he stashed in the tool shed. Since none of his relatives ever went in there (the gardening chores being his after all) all his emergency gear had gone unnoticed. However he'd rather not have to sleep in the drafty and cold shed if he could avoid it.

Harry made his way down the stairs to make a small dinner for himself. In doing so he had to smile at the thought of his Aunt Petunia having to deal with the kitchen without his help. For so many years he had been her kitchen servant, practically a maid, to do her cleaning and even most of the cooking when he had gotten older.

This changed somewhat when he went to Stonewall because Dudley had had followed in his father's footsteps to go to Smeltings. This meant he no longer had to dumb himself down in regards to his grades compared to Dudley's. So Harry couldn't afford to slack off on his schoolwork. Indeed he threw himself into it. Sitting up in his room was quite a few copies of packages he had sent off for grants and scholarships. His teachers all told him he'd certainly qualify for something. Even so, Harry had started working after school to start preparing himself financially for the future.

If he didn't manage to win any school money, Harry fully intended to join the British Army. There was no way he was going to end up a homeless bum on the dole like his Uncle said he would! Besides while he had a few friends he'd miss (like his co-worker Mike at Egham's) he had little tying him to the area.

His off-and-on-again girlfriend Mary was currently in the off mode after she'd gotten angry he wouldn't skive off work to go to a concert with her. While she rarely held it against him, Harry knew Mary's well-off upbringing made it hard for her to understand his drive. Unlike her, who had parents paying her way to Uni, Harry couldn't afford a pink slip.

Of course all of this hard work had cut into his chore time, especially in the kitchen since he often got home very late. This had set in motion the one and only fight Harry had picked with his relatives and surprisingly he had won. After years of the subtle abuse, the harsh punishments and the snide comments, Harry knew this was a fight he had to win.

That his aunt and uncle had backed down in the face of him angrily threatening them about how they had treated him over the years still amazed him. One moment they were yelling back and forth, Petunia with her shrill, biting tone and Vernon with his face flush red and the veins in his forehead throbbing and the next both seemed frightened of him. The argument quickly ended with Harry being allowed to continue working and saving all his wages.

To add to the oddity of the event was an off-hand comment from Dudley about how 'wicked cool' he thought Harry's eyes had looked. Supposedly Harry's eyes had seemed to glow in his anger during the argument. Harry had scoffed at this but his cousin had only shrugged and said nothing else about it. While he had been a terror to him while he was younger, after Smeltings, Dudders had other things to do than hang around and terrorize Harry.

For some reason Dudley's comments had never sat well with Harry. His entire life had been filled with little oddities and this was just one in a long line of them. Like how had he gotten on top of the roof when being chased by Dudley and his gang when he was eight? How did that nasty teacher's hair turn blue? Why was there always things breaking or chipping when he was angry or being punished? Dudley wasn't one to make weird comments so if he said Harry's eyes were glowing, Harry had to admit that to Dudley they must have.

Harry looked down an was surprised to find his plate almost empty. In all his musings, he had managed to make himself dinner and eat most of it without realizing it! The teen smiled to himself. The foreman at Egham's often said Harry was lost in the clouds more often than not.

Harry's smile turned to a frown. His imagination was about the only thing which had kept him going during the dark years before Stonewall. This was especially true when he was young and had yet to outgrow the cupboard under the stairs. His flights of fancy was all he had since any toys he had were scrounged from Dudley's cast-offs.

It was in the darkness of that cupboard that Harry felt his passion for drawing had been born. His mind had created all sorts of things and through drawing these flights of fancy became real on the paper. Out of these early drawings would come an idea of what he wanted to do for a living. Harry hoped to become an architect. His friends at Stonewall thought this an odd choice given how most of them thought he'd go into graphic or commercial art. But Harry had a burning desire to build new things, new habitats where things made sense and there was harmony.

A place different from the sterile sameness of the houses along Privet Drive where the banality of suburbia covered many sins.

Before Harry's musings could go down a dark road of bad memories of the past, a tapping at the window startled him.

Harry was even more startled to see what was making the tapping in the first place. A rather large owl was glaring at him through the glass before tapping impatiently on the glass again. Harry goggled at this for a bit when he realized the bird had a piece of rolled up paper of all things tied to it's leg.

"Did the Post go on strike?" Harry said with a shake of his head as he got up from the kitchen table and opened the window. He was sure his friend and Egham co-worker Mike was having him on in some form of pre-birthday prank. Yet what sort of joke started with an note tied to an owl of all things?

The moment the window opened, the owl quickly flew inside and landed on the table, eyeing the remains of Harry's dinner. But just as Harry rushed over to shoo it away, the owl surprised him by balancing on one leg while thrusting the other leg with the paper on it towards him. Harry eyed the bird who simply glared back. Finally carefully reached out and untied the parchment. He backed away from the owl who had immediately ignored him as it attacked the remnants of his dinner.

Harry frowned at the owl. The idea that this wasn't some prank was starting to tip-toe into his brain. Where would any of his friends get such a well trained owl? Harry looked out the windows but didn't see anything. Was it possible he was being set up by some TV comedy show?

Shaking his head at that thought, Harry looked at the parchment in his hands. It was closed with a wax stamp of all things. Harry couldn't make out the symbol embossed in the wax very well other than it was a shield with four different characters on it.

Harry broke the seal and unrolled the parchment to find it had a smaller note stuck to it. There was a second parchment which looked like a map on it. Additionally there was a small piece of blank paper which felt odd to Harry's touch. What struck him almost immediately was the writing seemed to have been done by hand with a calligraphy pen of all things!

_To Harry James Potter_

_#4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging_

_From the office of Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland._

Harry blinked at this. Perhaps this was a prank after all.

_Mr. Potter,_

_Congratulations! You have been selected for matriculation at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for the upcoming 1998-1999 term. While at Hogwarts, Europe's premier school of magic, you will learn the theoretical underpinnings of magic, practical applications of magic, the culture of Magical Britain, the delicate art of potion making and the care and use of magical flora and fauna. Your Hogwarts education will enable you to fully integrate into society as befitting one who can wield magic._

_This will no doubt come as a shock to you as you have lived you life among the non-magicals or Muggles as they are called. Therefore it is expected for you to dismiss this as some form of joke. Rest assured that your acceptance into Hogwarts is no prank and magic is very real._

_In the past, Muggleborn or Muggle-raised have been visited by one of our faculty to explain to the family the ins-and-outs of the magical world. However due to advances in Muggle surveillance technology, the Ministry of Magic has decried that all Muggleborn or Muggle-raised to London for the initial orientation to help keep the Statue of Secrecy intact._

_We at Hogwarts understand this is a lot to take in without proof. Attached to this message is a small piece of paper. This paper has been pre-enchanted to react to a person's magical signature. Hold the paper in your subordinate hand and tap it with your dominant hand's index finger and say the phrase __**Initia Incantio**__. This will begin the spell to prove magic is quite real by transforming the paper into wood. Tapping this wood with your finger again will cause it to catch fire so be sure it is in a safe area before activating the spell. _

_Because your are Muggleborn/Muggle-raised, this will set off an alarm to the Ministry of Magic. Normally this would be a warning against using magic outside designated safe areas. However in this case you will be sent a record of all instances of accidental magic done by the student. Magic manifest quite often during a child's development and during times of stress it can cause unexplained things. This record should go a long way to further prove magic's existence._

Harry looked at the second piece of paper. His mind was abuzz with the implications! It would make sense to dismiss this out of hand but too many odd things had happened to him or others around him growing up. Why hadn't he just been thinking about some of those bizarre things in his life not 5 minutes ago?

Harry rushed outside and pushed some of the lawn furniture away on the cement patio deck. He looked at the parchment again to be sure he would say the 'spell' correctly. For the first time, Harry was glad for the Latin lessons he had complained about back at school. He at least had a good idea of what he was saying. With a deep breath, Harry touched the paper and said firmly, "_**Initia Incantio!**_"

A cry of wonder and joy burst forth from Harry as the paper in his hand suddenly turned into wood. Harry began to laugh as he laid the piece of wood on the ground and tapped it again with his finger. After a brief pause, the wood was engulfed in a fierce blue-white flame which burnt it to ash in seconds.

Harry looked at the small pile of ash in amazement. He had just seen honest to God magic! Yet a life at the Dursleys had made him wary of his relatives so he quickly went and grabbed a dust pan and cleaned up the ash and returning the patio furniture to its rightful place. He also grabbed a piece of ham from the refrigerator when the owl hooted at him from the table. The owl greedily chowed down on this offering.

Harry had just finished moving the last piece of patio furniture back into place when a piercing owl hoot caught his attention. Harry looked up and sure enough another owl was winging its way towards him. It landed on the back of one of the chairs and quickly thrust out its leg like the first owl had.

Harry hurried to untie the note. Unlike the first owl, however, this owl took to the skies immediately after the note was removed. Harry noted it too was sealed by wax but this time the seal looked far more official. Harry broke the seal and began to read.

Even though it was done in ink like the first, Harry felt an immediate sense that this was a sort of form letter. The language was very terse in informing him that an incident of magic had been detected at his location but it fit the parameters of a Hogwarts acceptance letter. This was followed by a passage talking about the dangers of doing magic outside safe zones. Finally there was a list of previous magic instances which he had presumably done without realizing it.

Harry looked the list over and began nodding to himself. While he didn't understand all the terminology (what did obliviation mean?) Harry recognize almost every instance of something weird happening to him. About the only item which he didn't that caught his eye was something about a use of a banishing charm at the Surrey zoo. Harry remembered reading something about a problem in the Reptile exhibit a few years ago which coincided with a visit by him and the Dursleys. However all he could remember was a boa constrictor had briefly managed to escape. Now he had to wonder what really had happened given how now that he thought on it, Harry couldn't remember anything about that trip.

Harry carefully rolled the paper up and went back into the kitchen and unrolled the first parchment and began to read again.

_Obviously even with this demonstration of magic, you and your family _(Harry snorted at this; like he was going to tell his Uncle and Aunt about this!)_ will have many questions. These questions will be answered in a class to be held in London on August 1__st__. Then on August 15__th__ there will be another class which will allow students to be walked through buying their school supplies for the coming year. Term begins on September 1__st__._

Harry's eyes narrowed at this. September 1st was the date Harry had been given as the day Uncle Vernon had told him he'd absolutely be kicked out by. Given that he was of age with his birthday tomorrow, this again got Harry wondering why the Dursleys would put up with him for another month. Did his relatives know about this Hogwarts and that he might be going there when September of his 18th year had come?

Harry bit his lip. It might explain why the Dursleys had kept him all these years even when they didn't like him. Perhaps they knew about this magical school and had been told to care for him after his parents died.

His parents!

Harry suddenly wondered if perhaps his parents hadn't died in a car crash after all. If he was a wizard then perhaps one or both of his parents might have been as well? Harry looked over at a small family portrait (which he wasn't in of course) which Petunia was fond of and kept on the windowsill of the kitchen. Maybe his father had been a wizard! Given all the times Petunia had made snide comments about his dad, Harry had to wonder if it was because he was a wizard and took his mother off to these so called 'safe zones' for magic?

Harry thought about this for a moment before turning back to the parchment.

_Initial Hogwarts orientation will begin at 10 o-clock sharp the morning of August 1__st__ and continue till the dinner meal. The location of the class will be in the conference room at the Leaky Cauldron Pub. Directions and other related information can be found on the attached map. Please note, any non-magical family members will __**not**__ be able to see the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron unless physically touching a Magical._

_Lunch, dinner, snacks and beverages will be provided. Please refrain from bringing any cameras or electronics as magic has a way of bollixing up such devices. The Ministry of Magic and Hogwarts will not be liable for any such damages if this warning is not heeded._

_The orientation will explain all the benefits of a Hogwarts education, payment options, legacy students, Hogwarts houses and much, much more. We ask you only bring patience and an open mind. Magical society has been hidden for centuries and many of our ways will seem odd. Rest assured Muggleborns/Muggle-raised have a place in our society!_

_If, however, for whatever reason you refuse this orientation, please check the box below stating "I will not be attending Hogwarts" otherwise please check the box "I will be attending" and return this parchment to the delivery owl._

_Till August 1__st__, _

_Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall_

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry, Scotland - D__raco dormiens nunquam titillandus_

Harry couldn't help but snort at the last. What sort of university had such a motto? Even for a magical school it seemed a bit fanciful. Harry reread the entire paper again to make sure he hadn't missed anything. After reading the note from the Ministry of Magic, Harry could sense that this was also a form letter. This was even more obvious due to the small note attached to the bottom written in a much less neat, even hand. That and the ink had a reddish tint.

_Dear Harry,_

_I taught your parents as well as being something of a mentor to them both. I realize this comes as a shock and I wish circumstances allowed me to physically meet you prior to the meeting. Alas I have not been able to do meet-and-greets in person since 1982._

_While you will only be one of the many Muggleborn/Muggle-raised students, your case is very special. More I cannot say but there are security questions involved. I doubt the Dursleys have told you much of your parents given the animosity I witnessed by Petunia Evans when I visited your mother when giving her her Hogwarts letter. Suffice to say your parents died under dire circumstances which still affect Magical Britain to this day. So while I do not expect any problems, I want you to keep this note with you when you journey to the Leaky Cauldron._

_If at any time you feel threatened or in danger, grasp the note and say, "Godric" and you will be magically transported to a safe place. Again while I do not believe there will be a problem, please do this favor for an old woman who saw far too many of her friends go on to the next great adventure before their time._

_While the Headmaster wants to ease you into things slowly, I have battled with him regarding you since the day you were placed with your Aunt and Uncle. I owe it to your parents not to have you kept in the dark when, as you will find out, you are considered quite famous in our world. Do not be shocked when you are treated like a celebrity. Again I wish I could say more but till we can talk privately at the Leaky Cauldron, just keep your cool and be brave. All your questions will be answered._

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Professor of Transfigurations & Head of House Gryffindor_

Harry grabbed a pen from a holder near the phone on the kitchen counter and checked the box stating his intention to attend the orientation. Nothing was going to stop him from finding out more! The personal note from this McGonagall opened up lots and lots of questions even as it sort of answered some already.

It was obvious now that both his parents were magical. He wondered if his father had been born into the magical world or was a "Muggleborn" like his mother appeared to be. He assumed he was one of the "Muggle-raised" given how both of his parents were magical. Harry wished he could quiz Petunia about things but as the note said, it was obvious that Petunia had not taken well that her sister had been a witch.

Harry looked up at the wall and swore. He'd have to hustle to get to work on time. He carefully folded up the note McGonagall had sent and put it in his wallet. He then tied the official parchment back onto the waiting owl. It hooted loudly as it flew out the window which Harry closed after it. He watch it fly away and then quickly cleaned up before rushing up stairs to grab his work badge.

Regardless of how much his life had changed, Harry wasn't going to miss work over it. There still was the odd chance this was some sort of elaborate charade. He doubted it but he wasn't going to queer up his job which was part of his ticket to a life after the Dursleys.

**XxXxX**

**Chapter Two Preview**: Harry's off to London for the orientation and meets a future classmate on the way!**  
**

**XxXxX**

**A/N**: Given the response to this and the fact I can't get it out of my head, I figured I'd give in and post this. I'm going to try for small chapters and post when I can between chapters of my other fics like _Rejected Path_ and _Paging Dr. Bell_. If anything, this fic will allow me to look at other characters (like Mandy Brocklehurst or Sophia Roper) before they show up in _Paging Dr. Bell_.

**Canon? What is this canon you speak of?** Frankly I think most canon is going right out the window in this fic. Too much of canon just won't work with characters with half-a brain. As it has been said many times before, much of Harry Potter only works if every character has access at one time or another to the "Idiot Ball" which saps their ability to make logical choices.

**Ships**: Not even sure who Harry will end up with in this fic. I've got an idea but I'm just going to let the story develop and see what happens. I can say it won't be Ginny nor Luna. I think I'm going to try to do something different with Luna since I get enough accusations of Mary Sue Luna as it is. Plus one factor in this fic is mixing up the characters so not to constantly use the same ones over and over again.

**Feedback**: This is a fic I definitely will be taking a lot of suggestions on. Already got a great one regarding this being a fic where Harry might reasonably have taken some form of martial arts or boxing. Given how he was bullied early in life, I can see Harry doing this. So how prevalent is boxing classes or martial arts classes in the UK back in the 90's? Would it be something Harry could afford on his own?

9


	2. Mind the Gap

**DISCLAIMER THE FIRST: **_It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion. It is by the grace of coffee that thoughts acquire speed, the back acquires strains, the strains become a warning. The warning is that I make no money from this. It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion. _

**PITHY STATEMENT RELATING TO THIS CHAPTER**: "_Neither a wise man nor a brave man lies down on the tracks of history to wait for the train of the future to run over him_." **Dwight D Eisenhower** – 34th President of the United States and Supreme Commander of Allied forces in Europe during WW II.

**Last Updated**: 03-13-2014

**XxXxX**

**CHAPTER TWO – MIND THE GAP**

**XxXxX**

**HEATHROW AIRPORT TUBE STATION, LONDON**** – AUGUST 1****st**** 1998 – MORNING**

Harry checked his timetable and made his way to the waiting area for the next train into London. While he didn't use the Underground very often, he was familiar enough with it due to outings with friends over the last few years. Which was good since it was one less thing to be nervous about. The whole idea of a hidden magical world was more than enough to occupy his mind. It was also nice that the Piccadilly line took him straight to the Leicester Square station where it would be an easy walk to this Leaky Cauldron.

For him, the ride was cake and he counted himself lucky he lived so close to the line which would take him right to the meeting. It was one less hassle. That and he was happy Heathrow now had secure bike lockers. The first few times he had taken the Tube into London, he had fretted about his bike almost the entire trip.

Harry didn't own a lot, mostly cast-off from his cousin, but his bike was his most important possession after his drawing kit he had saved up for months to get. His bike gave him freedom and time, both things he cherished. Harry knew if he still had to walk like he did as a kid, he'd never be able to manage his two jobs and school.

All of that was important to him because while he knew his Aunt hated losing her little house servant, him being away seemed to make Uncle Vernon happy. Him being gone from the house most of the time made ignoring him easier. It was why Harry always did his chores quickly on the weekend and then headed to the library to do any homework or hang out a friend's house.

Still, even then Aunt Petunia seemed to watch him like a hawk. If he didn't leave a note or give her a clear itinerary of where he was going to be, she would get angry and that generally meant having to deal with an angry Vernon. True, neither of them had hit him in a long time, especially after he'd started putting on weight after starting at Stonewall and being able to buy food away from Privet Drive. Still it wasn't worth the aggravation. Plus it wasn't like Harry was off at rave or something. He generally was at work, school or the library.

It was probably another reason why Mary and he had such an on-and-off relationship. She never liked the little amount of time he had for her. Harry understood the problem but in the grand scheme of things, teenage dating was rather low even if sometimes the girls he'd see at the Superstore in their tight jeans or cutoffs got him quite randy.

Luckily for him, work generally tired him out enough that he rarely had time to brood about his lack of a love life. Till he could escape Privet Drive, Harry had been content with the occasional wank in the shower.

Of course his Aunt Petunia seemed to think the minute she lost sight of him, he was off to get into some trouble which would reflect back on them and her status in the community. Other than occasionally stopping Dudley and his friends from bullying the neighborhood kids, Harry led a quiet life so he really couldn't understand his aunt's paranoia about him.

That was till his Hogwarts letter. Now Harry had to wonder how much she knew. After the discussion he had had with her this morning, this question still bothered him.

**XxXxX**

**#4 PRIVET DRIVE, LITTLE WHINGING – AUGUST 1****st**** 1998 – EARLIER**

"Where are you going?"

Harry turned to find his Aunt Petunia staring at him with a flinty look in her eye, fists on her hips.

"I'm biking of to Heathrow to catch the Tube. I left a note on the table."

"I know that," Petunia snapped. "I asked you where you are going?"

Something in the way she said it made Harry pause before answering, "Right now I'm not quite sure. Mike and the other guys from Egham said something about some show later but I just want to hit the National Portrait Gallery. There is a meet-and-greet with an artist I favor."

Petunia sniffed at this but didn't saying anything. Her pinched face still wore a look of suspicion.

Harry couldn't help but grin at this, "I know, I know. Boring but it _**is**_ my birthday bash so the guys have to go along with it." While what Harry said was true (even if Mike though a museum was a good place to chat up classy birds) he couldn't help buy needle his Aunt. While Harry wasn't heading to the museum, he had planned to do exactly what he'd just said prior to his Hogwarts letter. His friends couldn't believed he'd rather look at paintings and talk to an artist than go clubbing and maybe get a bit pissed. Not that Harry hadn't minded doing that _**after**_ the museum. He was a teenage guy after all.

"When will you be back. I'll not have you coming home late and waking up the whole neighborhood," Petunia said angrily.

"Aunt Petunia, I have to bike home from Heathrow and I have an early shift tomorrow at Sainsbury's. I'm not going to run amok in London. Heck if any of us had a car, I'd probably be the designated driver," Harry said placatingly.

"If I find out you're getting into trouble…" Petunia started hotly.

Harry cut her off by holding up his hands, "Aunt Petunia, we've had this argument before. I said I wouldn't do anything to embarrass you and Uncle Vernon when I started working. Have I ever broken that promise?"

Petunia scowled in reply before grudgingly answering, "No. But now you're 18!"

Harry shrugged, "So? Uncle Vernon said September 1st and I'm not going to do anything before that which would get me chucked out into the streets. Come on, Aunt Petunia! My girlfriend broke up with me because I work too much. If I'm not going to skive off work for her, I'm certainly not going to do anything to get me in trouble here at home."

Petunia stared intently at him for a long time. Finally she frowned in a way which made Harry think she didn't like what she was about to do. "So you're just going to London for fun? Nothing _funny_ is going on?"

Harry almost frowned at the odd inflection Petunia had put on the word funny. It made him wonder if she might know where he was actually going. Given what McGonagall had written, his aunt hadn't like it that his mother had been a witch.

"Well I wouldn't put my friend Mike up to try and throw in some way to embarrass me while we're out but I'm just looking forward to a day on the town. I don't think I'll be in the London area after the First given the scholarships I have open to me. Best to take in the sights now before I leave for someplace like Bristol," Harry said with a forced air of innocence. It helped that what he said was true. If this Hogwarts didn't pan out, he'd probably be in Bristol for an apprenticeship in drafting.

Petunia looked surprised then suspicious, "Bristol? I thought perhaps you'd end up someplace like Scotland."

Harry carefully let nothing show on his face, "Scotland? No way! Dark, cold and filled with haggis. No thanks! Besides while I did have a school up in Edinburgh that I put in for, I didn't get accepted."

Petunia scowled at this for a moment more before waggling a finger at him, "Just remember what I said about a late night!"

"I will, Aunt Petunia," Harry replied. "Besides I can always crash at Julian's if we do end up coming home late. The way his dad snores, we could come home with a brass band playing and he wouldn't wake up."

Petunia sniffed at this but turned away. Harry checked his watch quickly and saw he still had plenty of time. He quickly made his way out the door in case his aunt decided to quiz him some more.

**XxXxX**

**HEATHROW AIRPORT TUBE STATION, LONDON**** – AUGUST 1****st**** 1998 – MORNING**

Harry looked at the departure/arrival board. He had a good ten minutes or so before his train arrived. While he did so, he unconsciously fingered the front of his shirt. He was wearing a button-down shirt with one of the buttons undone. This allowed him to quick reach into his shirt if he had to. He had taped McGonagall's note to his work badge which he kept on a lanyard around his neck. This way the note wouldn't get lost but he could get to it quickly if he had to.

Harry tried to be calm but be alert at the same time. He carefully swept his gaze around the waiting area but so far nothing seemed out of the ordinary. While he had no idea what sort of threat McGonagall thought might be out there, Harry tried to keep sharp without getting too paranoid about it. But then something caught his eye.

A rather pretty blonde was leaning against a column while waiting for the train. What made Harry's eyes narrow in surprise was that under the Underground schedule she was looking at was something which looked suspiciously like his Hogwarts. Harry wondered if might be the directions map. His was carefully folded up and in his breast pocket.

Harry watched the girl for a bit. She was dressed well in the type of clothes which were expensive but didn't immediately shriek "Wealthy!" to the world. Her blonde hair flowed down to the middle of her back and Harry could tell she had had her nails done professionally. Yet for all that, she didn't seem to have the snooty air he often saw in well-off people he'd occasionally run into at the Superstore.

So after a minute to gather his courage, Harry carefully walked up and stood next to her. She looked up at him briefly before looking back at her map. Harry immediately noticed her make-up was well done but muted and not over-the-top. Her eyebrows had been carefully waxed, he noted. Again while her demeanor spoke of wealth, she seemed approachable.

Harry waited a bit to see if she'd look up at him again. Finally he turned to her and said politely, "Excuse me Miss. I don't mean to be forward but by any chance would that piece of paper under your Underground schedule be a map with directions to a school orientation in London today?"

The girl looked up quickly at him, "Excuse me?" She hugged her paperwork protectively over her chest. Her accent sounded Northern. Not Scottish but definitely Northern.

However this just allowed Harry a better view of the parchment. "Ah I see you do. Good, I was still a bit worried this was all some elaborate prank and any minute some camera crew was going to jump out. If it does turn out to be some joke at least I won't be the only one it's being played on."

The girl eyed him for a moment before smiling shyly, "So you got a visit from some owls too?"

Harry laughed, "Sure did. Hi, I'm Harry Potter by the way." Harry held out his hand.

The girl took it with a small laugh of her own. "Those dratted birds almost gave my cat a heart attack. My name's Lisa. Lisa Turpin and I'm from Carlisle. Just flew in this morning."

"Ah! That explains your accent," Harry said.

"What about you? You sound pretty local," Lisa asked.

"I'm about as local as you can get. I live a few kilometers from here. I got here on my bike in about 10 minutes," Harry replied.

Lisa's eyes widened at that, "That's convenient! I was lucky my father hates to travel for fun given how much he does for his job. His frequent flier miles meant this trip didn't cost me a thing. It certainly beat having to take the train to London."

The overhead suddenly blared out that the next train was arriving soon. "Your parents didn't come?" he asked carefully.

Lisa shrugged, "I don't see yours here either."

Harry smiled a bit nervously, "Yeah well that's true. Of course my parents are dead but I know what you mean. Hopefully you get along better with your family than I do with my aunt and uncle."

Lisa grimaced, "I'm sorry; I didn't know."

Harry waved her off, "How could you? Don't sweat it. As I said, my relatives and I don't really care for each other and I think it is because my mother had the magic and my aunt didn't like having an witch for a sister."

Lisa's eyes got big at that, "So you knew about magic before your letter?"

Harry shook his head, "No but I got a personal note from the Deputy Headmistress along with my Hogwarts letter explaining some things. Apparently I'm famous in the magical world but she didn't say why. I certainly can't think of anything other than it seemed from her letter my parents died under 'dire circumstances' whatever that means. Hopefully it was something heroic at least. I hope so because it beats the stories from my relatives saying they were drunks and died in a car crash."

Lisa wrinkled her nose in disgust, "Wow! Your relatives sound like winners. No; I get along fine with my family but parents think this is a joke somehow, sort of like you mentioned earlier. If this turns out to be true, I'm betting they'll show up for the next orientation."

"Well that's good to hear...and here is our train!" Harry said as it pulled up to the station.

"So you know where we're going, right?" Lisa asked as they waited for passengers to get off the train before the pair of them boarded and grabbed some empty seats.

"Well I can't say I'm overly familiar with the area we're going to but I've been there before so we won't get lost. Actually we'd have to work really hard to manage it. It's just a hop, skip and a jump after we get off at Leicester Square station." Harry explained.

Lisa looked quite relieved to Harry's eyes. "Good. I'm pretty good with directions but still it's nice to have someone who lives in the area to be my private tour guide!"

Harry laughed, "Well you know it is such a chore to help out a pretty gal in need."

Harry was happy Lisa just smirked at his 'pretty gal' comment. It was true, though. Lisa had that sort of girl-next-door look which one just knew she pulled off even when just getting out of bed. Not the beauty which makes everyone take notice right away. But Harry figured her looks would last long past the time when the cheerleader type beauty queens lost their luster.

While he hadn't done much dating, Harry had an eye for details and Lisa had 'good lines' as his art teacher often said. Realizing this could be an opportunity for him, Harry turned to his new potential classmate, "Hey Lisa, if we ever get a chance, do you mind if I draw you?"

Lisa looked surprised, "You're an artist?"

Harry shrugged slightly, "Yes and no. I had been planning to try and become an architect. So I'm good with CAD type drawings, blue-prints and the like. I just need to practice more on drawing people. I hope this Hogwarts has art classes. Stonewall, that's my last school, didn't have much in the way of drawing nudes or anything like that. While I got a good grounding on how the body is put together, I need more practice drawing people. Mostly I'm forced to draw people while I'm in a boring classes. Not really the best place or the best models."

Lisa laughed, "Well that's a bit more productive than the doodling I'd do when I'm bored."

Harry grinned, "Yeah well the teacher's never seemed to think when they'd catch me. So what about you? I'm sure your Hogwarts letter put the cat among your career pigeons."

Lisa frowned at this, "Not as much as you might think. My dad is your typical corporate suit. He's driven and makes a lot of money. My mother is almost as bad but she's all into politics and charities and hobnobbing with important people. Both my parents want me to follow them into what they are doing and both could pull strings to get me in the door."

"But then you really haven't done anything yourself, right?" Harry asked.

Lisa shook her head, "No, it's not that. My parents might do a little nepotism when it comes to opening doors for me and my little brother but they'd expect me to carry my weight. It's just I'm not that type of person. I don't like the go, go, go hustle. My parents rarely sit still. Even as much as my dad carps about traveling, when he's home you can bet he's either out with my mum or out golfing with other business types. I can't remember the last time we had a quiet family time alone."

Harry nodded slowly at this, "Sort of sounds like my relatives. My uncle is always trying to schmooze his way up the corporate ladder. While my Aunt Petunia stays at home, she's always out there. If there was an Olympic event for gossip, well she'd have a gold or two. I spent a lot of time in the library before I starting working after school jobs just to get some peace."

"Exactly! I love to read and I love to learn. I'm not sure what I want to do with my life right now but all I do know is I want to use my brain and not be the industrial-political animal my parents are even if it means giving up on a lot of money." Lisa said.

"Well at least you have the option to fall back to. By mutual consent, come September 1st my relatives and I will part ways and if we see each other again it'll be by accident," Harry said. "I'd already planned to join the Army if my scholarships hadn't panned out."

Lisa shook her head at this, "Harsh."

Harry shrugged, "I had a harsh life growing up. My parents died when I was 15 months old and I think someone must have leaned on my relatives to take me in given how much they dislike me. Some of the things McGonagall wrote about in her personal note seem to imply this as well. Even so, just because they took me didn't mean they treated me decently." 

Lisa's eyes went wide, "They abused you?"

Harry grimaced at the horrified tone in the blonde's voice, "Mostly neglected me. Oh Uncle Vernon would wallop the piss out of me when he was angry but mostly it was just being treated like a live-in maid. I did almost all the chores and prior to me getting my own job, I had to wear my cousin's hand-me-downs till recently and he outweighs me by a stone or two."

"That's terrible!" Lisa exclaimed. "Did they give you that wicked scar?"

Harry shook his head, "No. I think I got this the night my parents died. It still aches sometimes."

Lisa frowned, "Still that's no excuse! Didn't anyone in your school ever do anything?"

Harry shrugged again, "I think they tried. I remember at least two times I thought something was going to happened but nothing ever changed. I've always wonder why no one from social services ever got involved in my case. I know a lot of my teachers complained before I went to Stonewall. So I have to wonder if perhaps this magical community had something to do with nothing ever being done. Even more so know that I have my Hogwarts letter. For example, how long was your accidental magic list?"

Lisa bit her lip, "I only had two. I was chased by a dog once and apparently I 'banished' it into a tree. Then I broke some glasses in a restaurant trying to get my mum's attention. You?"

Harry smiled the one-sided smile his friends were so familiar with, "Oh I had about 20. Not sure if that is normal but it does tell me that I kept this Ministry of Magic hopping to cover it all up."

Lisa's eyes narrowed at this, "And that certainly suggests either you were being watched or at least someone would see your living conditions."

"Yup! And since nothing ever changed, it implies someone wanted it that way," Harry said.

"Hmmm," Lisa hummed to herself. "I wonder if this is because of your fame? Didn't you say McGonagall said you were a celebrity?"

Harry nodded, "Yeah and it makes me wonder if this is how they treat their heroes, Heaven help their villains!"

Both teens had a laugh at this. Almost by unspoken consent the two teens switch to small talk regarding their recent school experiences. Before either knew it, the loudspeaker was announcing the next stop was Leicester Square station.

After being careful to mind the gap, Harry led Lisa north up Charing Cross Rd. As he had said, it would take a blind idiot to get lost given how it was barely over a block up the street to where this Leaky Cauldron was.

And in moments they found themselves staring at a shabby building wedged in between Henry Pordes Books and the Caffe Vergnano 1882 pizzeria. Standing in front of the entrance was a powerfully built black man. His business suit looked normal even if his bald head and gold earring loop contrasted strongly with it. The guy screamed 'security' to Harry especially since he was looking at a clipboard at the moment.

Lisa, however, walked right up to him. Harry realized given her parent's lifestyle, she was probably used to dealing with security types.

"Excuse me sir, but are we in the right place for the Hogwarts orientation?" Lisa said respectfully.

The man (wizard?) looked up and smiled at Lisa in a friendly way before looking at Harry. The teen could tell right away that this man must recognize him or knew him somehow because he blinked in surprise but recovered quickly.

"Good morning, I'm Auror Shacklebolt and yes you're in the right place. Your name miss?"

"Lisa Turpin," Lisa replied.

"Ah here you are. And Harry Potter as well," Shacklebolt said as he obviously checked their names off a list.

"You know who I am?" Harry had to ask even if the answer was obvious.

Shacklebolt nodded, "You look a great deal like your father. We went through Auror academy together not to mention he was a year ahead of me at school."

"What is an auror?" Lisa asked.

"We're sort of a combination of police, secret service and detective," Shacklebolt replied.

"My dad was a cop?" Harry asked in amazement.

"Yes he was although if it hadn't been for the war he probably would have gone into professional Quidditch…which is a magical sport," Shacklebolt explained. The man frowned, "You relatives never told you about your parents?"

Harry shook his head, "I've never even seen a picture of them. They told me my parents were lay-abouts and died in a drunken car crash."

Shacklebolt's expression grew cold. Harry could barely hear the "_So Minerva was right_" the man said under his breath. "Well they didn't. I know Professor McGonagall wants to have a word with you after the orientation. This is hardly the place to talk about it. Just go in and follow the signs to your left."

Both teens nodded but before they went through the door, Shacklebolt touched Harry on the arm, "Oh maybe Professor McGonagall said something about it but if she didn't, let me give you a piece of advice."

"Is this about me being a celebrity?" Harry asked.

Shacklebolt looked relieved at this, "Yes it is. I just wanted to warn you. It probably won't happen today but don't be surprised if you get mobbed the first time out in the Alley. Just keep your cool."

"Why is he so famous?" Lisa asked.

Shacklebolt shook his head, "Not the place to discuss it. You'll probably hear a bit of it during today's orientation. It's about the war we had back in the early 80's."

Harry frowned, "The war which my parents died in?"

Shacklebolt nodded.

Harry and Lisa traded a confused look. Other than the Falklands, there hadn't been any known conflicts back then.

Shacklebolt saw this and laughed, "Oh we keep our wars secret like everything else. Only a few Muggles ever knew there was a war going on. As I said, you'll learn more today and at Hogwarts."

Harry frowned at this but let Lisa drag him through the door.

Shacklebolt's words proved true as the man behind the bar dropped the tankard he was cleaning, "Bless my soul! It's young Harry Potter!"

"Uhm looking for the orientation?" Harry asked lamely. The man was looking at him like he was the Second Coming.

The man blinked in surprise. "Orientation? Why would you need that? You're not Muggleborn!"

Harry sighed, "Probably because I was Muggle-raised?"

The barman frowned, "Are you sure? That's not what the Ministry and the Prophet says."

"I think Harry knows the details of his childhood Mister…" Lisa said tartly.

"Tom, Tom Puffett. I run the Cauldron. No disrespect to Mr. Potter meant." The man looked at Harry like he expect Harry to call for a whipping or something.

"Well Mr. Puffett, I didn't know about magic till the day before my birthday. So I'm looking forward to this orientation," Harry said in an even tone to try and calm the man's nerves.

"Just Tom, Mr. Potter. The class is just through those doors!" the man said in obvious relief.

"Come on Harry; maybe we can get some answer before the meeting starts," Lisa said as she began to once again drag him towards the doors.

Answers. Yes Harry wanted some answer. If someone like Tom's reaction was going to be typical, he needed to know a _**lot**_ more about what was going on.

**XxXxX**

**Chapter Three Preview**: Harry and the rest of the Muggleborns get their first look into the Magical world…and they aren't sure if they like it.

**XxXxX**

**A/N**: I keep saying this but I'm really going to try to keep chapters of this fic short. I've started enough fics that I don't need another unfinished fic. Smaller chapters allow me to crank out things quickly when the muse hits me. So while I'm always saying one should never write to a word count, I think a fic of this type will allow me to break things up into small chunks so I can focus on finishing _Rejected Path_.

11


	3. First Contact

**DISCLAIMER THE FIRST: **_It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion. It is by the grace of coffee that thoughts acquire speed, the back acquires strains, the strains become a warning. The warning is that I make no money from this. It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion. _

**PITHY STATEMENT RELATING TO THIS CHAPTER**: "_We do not need to proselytize either by our speech or by our writing. We can only do so really with our lives. Let our lives be open books for all to study_." **Mahatma Gandhi** – Indian nationalist and peacemaker – 1869-1948

**Last Updated**: 03-24-2014

**XxXxX**

**CHAPTER THREE – FIRST CONTACT**

**XxXxX**

**THE LEAKY CAULDRON, LONDON**** – AUGUST 1****st**** 1998 – MORNING**

Harry allowed Lisa to drag him through the door marked 'orientation' since his mind was on Tom's reaction to him. Normally Harry didn't like being touched, something his off-and-on girlfriend found frustrating. Yet as the sound of voices brought him out of his thoughts, Harry realized he rather liked the feeling of Lisa's hand on his.

In fact Harry felt rather comfortable around Lisa and even the Auror outside had made him feel much more at ease than Harry was used to feeling around strangers. He wondered; was it the magic? Could he be responding to Lisa better because she had the magic like he did? 

Something Harry was sure he'd find out about soon enough.

Harry looked up as Lisa dropped his hand to find himself in a rather rustic room. All of the furniture was wood and for the most part looked like it could be a set for some Shakespearean play. This surprised Harry. Was there a reason for all the wood? Didn't magical creatures like faeries recoil from iron?

Looking around, Harry hope the magical world wasn't going to be one devoid of metal or plastic or that would become old _**really **_fast.

Harry followed Lisa as she made her way to a stereotypical witch in that she wore a hat straight out of The Wizard of Oz. Of course the big woman wasn't green but had a jovial air to her. Her robes were an earthy brown with yellow and black piping. She sat at a desk filled with papers and a few books. It looked to Harry as if she was catching up on some paperwork before the orientation started.

There were a few other potential students waiting but before he could get a good look at them, he figured he better stick with Lisa who was already making her way to the older witch who was already looking up from her papers with a smile.

"Good morning, dearie! I'm Professor Sprout. And who might you be?"

'_Sprout? Does she teach gardening?_' Harry couldn't help but think as Lisa answered with, "Good morning. I'm Lisa Turpin and this is Harry Potter."

Expecting a repeat of Tom's performance, Harry was glad to see Sprout simply look at him in mild surprise. What interested him was how the professor seemed to look at his forehead for a moment before answering, "Ah yes of course. My word! You _**do**_ look so much like your father but with your mother's eyes." Like Auror Shacklebolt, Sprout checked off their names on a list in front of her.

"You knew my parents, Professor Sprout?" Harry asked politely while wondering why she seemed fascinated by his scar given she kept glancing at his forehead. Most people remarked on it but except for it generating his nickname of Sparky, most ignored it.

"Well I can't say I knew them well but before they died I did a lot of work with your mother. While she had planned to go for her mastery in Charms, she was also an accomplished potions brewer. Given I teach Herbology at Hogwarts, I have access to many rare items which can be used in many unique potions which were needed at the time. Professor McGonagall taught them as did Professor Flitwick who was her mentor in Charms."

"Will either be here today?" Harry asked. He figured Sprout's comment of "_at that time_" was referring to the war Shacklebolt had mentioned. So it looked like his dad was a soldier-cop while his mother brewed potions for the war effort. At lot better than dying in a drunken car-crash, that was for damned sure.

Sprout nodded, "Minerva should be here any minute but Professor Flitwick is in Europe visiting relatives I believe. Now if you two could take a seat, the orientation should begin in about a half an hour. There are refreshments on the back table."

"Come on, Harry; I could use a cuppa," Lisa said with a nudge.

Harry followed the blonde. While the other teens in the room were checking them out, it was obvious it was simple curiosity. Harry was glad that Sprout hadn't gotten all out of whack over him like Shacklebolt warned about. Of course since she was a contemporary of McGonagall, it made a bit of sense. That she actually did teach a form of gardening _**was**_ rather funny.

There were already two people chatting at the refreshment table. The first was a sandy-haired guy whose clothes seemed quite posh. The second was a very good looking brunette who had even nicer curves in Harry's opinion. Her clothes seemed a bit odd. Again Lisa took the lead, "Hi! I'm Lisa Turpin and this is Harry Potter. How's the food?"

The posh looking blond shrugged, "It's good though a bit weird. Who ever heard of pumpkin juice? Oh I'm Justin, Justin Finch-Fletchley." He reached out and shook hands with Harry as the girl did the same with Lisa.

"I'm Lilith Moon and in answer to Justin's question, Magicals do eat a lot of weird combinations of things. You supposedly get used to it. It's good to meet you."

"I take it you've been around magic before?" Harry asked as he made himself a sandwich while Lisa poured them both some tea.

Lilith shrugged, "My brother Shaddrach is a wizard as well. This will be his fourth year at Hogwarts so I've known about it for awhile. It's how I know about the food. Shaddrach wrote a lot about the food at school his first year. Do you know each other?"

Lisa shook her head, "Nope. I live in Carlisle and flew to Heathrow. I was waiting for the Tube when Harry spotted my Hogwarts map. He lives nearby actually."

"In Little Whinging, right outside the airport. You?" Harry asked.

"Oh I live in London in the Ilford borough. In fact I just found out recently how close I live to the Saint George's Magical School of England," Lilith replied.

"Really? So there are more schools than just Hogwarts?" Lisa asked.

"There are six others. I don't want to step on the toes of the orientation but from what my brother tells me these other schools act as primary and secondary schools for magical families. Hogwarts used to be one but now it's the only magical Uni in the UK," Lilith explained.

"Wait, does that mean we're going to be behind?" Justin asked. "I just finished graduating from Eton and have got a lot of options. I'm not going to waste any time if I'm going to be behind."

Lilith shook her head, "Well from what Shaddrach says, we'll all be a bit behind in a few areas which don't require magic. However real magical training, magic you need a wand for, has to wait til were around 18 so that our bodies have gotten through puberty and our magical cores have developed enough. Apparently training in magic earlier results in problems like people going crazy or losing control of their magic and blowing up."

"Even so, it sounds like we'll be behind and have to catch up," Harry said. Justin nodded in agreement.

Lilith shook her head again, "Yes it's true but I'm sure you've already noticed how…err primitive things look here?"

The other three nodded at this.

"Well in many ways the magical world is really backward. Plus they don't teach the same sort of things we all learned. Shaddrach says Magicals are really lacking in logic, most have no clue what the real world is like and in many ways are rather lazy. A lot of the richer ones have these magical elves which do most of their work for them. So while we will be behind in some areas, we know a lot more than they do and apparently have a much better work ethic," Lilith explained.

This seemed to mollify Justin, Harry saw. "Good because my parents aren't too keen on the idea of me taking a 5 year sabbatical from school."

Lisa made a face, "Wait…Finch-Fletchley; is your dad a banker?"

Justin nodded, "Owns the bank actually."

Lisa nodded in return, "I think my parents probably know yours or at least have done business with them. Dad works for the Stobart Group. Does your mum do the charity circuit?"

Both Harry and Lilith had to laugh at the face Justin made, "Oh god yes! In fact one of the reasons I'm thinking this Hogwarts will be good is it'll get me out of being dragged to another social function. I'm a growing boy! Canapés are the tool of the Devil!"

"Well you're in luck then. Shaddrach said if there is one thing about Hogwarts is they don't skimp on the food," Lilith said. "Although he said it's really meat heavy and lacking in veggies. Luckily he helped out these twin brothers out of a jam and they told him the secret of the kitchens so he gets better food now."

Before Harry could ask about this kitchen secret, Lisa nudged him, "We should maybe grab some seats?"

Harry turned and noticed a group of six teens coming through the door and queuing up to Professor Sprout. "Good idea," Harry said with a nod.

The two made their way to an open spot near a brunette with really bushy hair. There were quite a few books stack on the chairs near her. "Excuse me, are you saving these seats?" Harry asked.

The brunette looked up and surprisingly blushed, "Oh these? No…no one is sitting here. Just me and my books."

Harry smirked a bit at the girl's possessive tone about her books, "Well I'm glad to see that Hogwarts is a progressive school. So are you proud of your books being accepted at Hogwarts?"

The girl blinked at her in confusions, "My books being what? Excuse me?"

Harry tried to keep from smiling broadly, "There is no need to be shy. I'm sure you raised them well if they all could get accepted into such a prestigious school as Hogwarts. So where is the father? Off having a piss up leaving you with the kids as usual?"

The brunette just blinked at this, her mouth moving a bit but without any sound coming out. Harry noticed her front teeth were a bit large.

"Harry! Quit being a prat!" Lisa said with a nudge into Harry's ribs while she held out her hand. "Hi! My name's Lisa Turpin. Don't mind Mr. Comedy here."

The girl took Lisa's hand and shook it while glaring a bit at Harry before smiling at Lisa, "I'm Hermione Granger. It's good to meet you."

"Hermione huh? Parents Shakespeare fans or are they into Greek history?" Harry asked as he took his seat. He'd seen the name in both places during his time in Little Whinging library.

"Neither actually. Oh well I guess a bit of the Shakespeare. I'm named after a family friend and her father was in a Shakespearian stage troupe while at Uni," Hermione said matter-of-factly. She seemed pleased that Harry knew about her name.

"I'm Harry "Mr. Comedy" Potter," Harry said with his own nudge at Lisa. "All kidding aside, I hope you live near here; that's a lot of books to have to lug around."

Hermione shook her head. "I live in Winchester. My parents are dentists there but my dad shares an office here in London. He does a lot of cosmetic surgery for high-paying clients. I stayed the night in the flat he keeps here. Besides, I'm used to carrying lots of books."

Harry couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at that. Keeping an apartment one only used occasionally in London as well as a home in Winchester couldn't be cheap. He was starting to feel a bit leery of his own background given how three of the people he'd met so far came from wealth. Although Hermione's clothes, while nice, didn't hint at riches.

She did, however, give off that bookworm "I don't care about such things" vibe. Watching her chat with Lisa reminded Harry of one of his friends back at Stonewall. She was the same way. In a choice of new clothes or new books, she'd always pick the books.

Something suddenly struck Harry. He looked around and realized what it was. "That's odd."

Both Lisa and Hermione looked at him, "What's odd?" Hermione asked.

"I know why my relatives aren't here just like I know why Lisa's parents aren't. But where are the rest of the families? It's just us kids here," Harry said as he gestured around the room.

Both girls frowned at this as they saw what Harry was getting at. There was about 15 or so teenagers in the room along with Professor Sprout. An older witch came through the door talking quietly with a rather sullen looking boy. Harry figured this had to be Professor McGonagall.

"Huh, that _**is**_ odd," Lisa said. "Why didn't your parents come, Hermione?"

"Well both had clients they needed to deal with," Hermione said with a slight frown.

"On a Saturday?" Harry asked incredulously.

Hermione shrugged, "For my dad that isn't too strange. My mother usually only has to do it when called in for an emergency." Her tone made it sound like she too was finding it rather coincidental that her mother was busy at this time.

"Well not to sound paranoid but something sort of stinks here," Harry said.

"Let's hear what they have to say first before getting all freaked out," Lisa said. "Maybe there is a good reason behind it all."

"Or maybe they want us away from our families," Harry said. Not that he cared about his 'family' but it did make him uneasy.

"Why would they bother? We're all adults now," Hermione asked. "If the wizarding world was going to do something sketchy, wouldn't it make sense to steal us away from our families as children and raise us in their culture? I mean they were able to track our accidental magic so they knew where we all lived."

Harry grimaced, "Hmm…that makes a lot of sense. Still, I'm going to ask if it's not brought up."

Lisa nodded, "Probably a good idea." She turned to Hermione, "That's good thinking. You obviously have a good head on your shoulders.

Hermione blushed at this but Harry couldn't help but add, "I'm sure raising all these fine books sharpened her wit. Too bad the dad had to run off on you!"

This, of course, earned him another nudge in the ribs from Lisa and a pinched look from Hermione.

"Holy Crap! You're Harry Potter!"

Harry turned with a scowl on his face to find himself facing a witch with dirty-blonde hair. While not as curvy as Lilith, Harry quickly realized she was quite the looker in a way similar to Lisa. In fact, all the people in the room were above average in looks. Even Hermione was rather pretty, big teeth and all.

All of this flashed behind the scenes of Harry's mind, "Excuse me? What does divine shit have to do with me?"

The witch gaped at this before blushing when she realized how rude her comment had come out. "Sorry! I'm sorry. It's just I didn't expect you to be here. I mean you're not a Muggleborn!"

Harry sighed; it was like Tom outside, "Well Miss…"

"Brocklehurst. Mandy Brocklehurst," the girl supplied.

"Well Mandy, first thing is that until the day before my eighteenth birthday, I didn't know I was a wizard. I've been raised in the non-magical world since I was two year old. I know that apparently contradicts some information out there about me but trust me, it's true. Secondly, how did you know I was Harry Potter and thirdly why would you care?"

The girl named Mandy just blinked at this, "Well it's obvious you're Harry Potter. Your cursed scar gives it away. You got it when you defeated You-Know-Who."

"His _**scar**_ gave it away?" Lisa said in amazement.

"A **cursed** scar?" Hermione asked in alarm.

"And who is the person I 'defeated' that I'm supposed to already know?" Harry asked.

"A question for another time, I am afraid," came a stern voice without a hint of harshness. All the teens turned to find the other adult witch looking at them. "Mr. Potter's celebrity status will come up in the orientation."

The witch and went up to the podium next to the desk Professor Sprout was sitting at. "If you all could take your seats, we can begin as everyone is all here. Thank you for being early as this will allow more times for questions later. As many of you may have guessed already, I am Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall. I teach the subject of transfigurations as well as being the head of Gryffindor House. With me today is our Herbology instructor Professor Pomona Sprout who is also the head of Hufflepuff House.

There was a quick bustle as all the standing teens quickly took their seats.

McGonagall waited silently till everyone was settled. Finally she took out what to Harry looked to be an ornately carved stick and to everyone's amazement turned the podium in front of her into a lion with a wave of what was obviously a wand. The lion growled a bit before another wave of the wand returned it back into a podium. The room was filled with shocked gasps and frantic whispering between the teens.

"As this demonstrates at bit more clearly for you all, magic is quite real and powerful. Few in the world are blessed with the ability to use magic. Yet this power comes with a price which for those such as yourself, growing up in the Muggle world, sometimes feel hard to pay.

The room feel silent at this blunt statement.

McGonagall made a twirl with her wand leaving a trail of sparks, "Some might say I'm holding one of the most deadly weapons known to mankind in my hand. With it I can kill without leaving a mark, control someone's actions, transform water into wine and quite simply make the impossible possible. Such power, as I said, comes with responsibilities and conditions. I ask you all to keep an open mind and understand many of the things you will hear today may sound odd if not distasteful to your concepts of things. I fully understand how shocking this will be for you as I have been doing these orientations now for over almost 75 years."

There were more shocked gasps at this. Harry himself found himself looking more closely at McGonagall. She looked a bit weathered but easily in her sixties. Even if she was some sort of magical prodigy, he was sure it took a long time before one could become a teacher at Hogwarts. That implied that McGonagall was easily over 100 years old!

McGonagall looked down at her notes as she took out a pair of onyx colored reading glasses, "There is much to tell so let us begin." With that Professor Sprout waved her own wand and folders flew out of a box behind her until they rested in front of all the startled teens.

"Please save your questions till later in the presentation if you please," Professor Sprout said. "As Minerva said, we've both been doing this for a long time and have created these handouts reflecting years of questions.

Harry opened his packet up and immediately noted everything was printed on parchment. Apparently Lilith was right about being somewhat backwards. Apparently plain white paper wasn't in the magical cards.

**OoOoO**

"Well that was interesting," Dean Thomas said in a voice which was obviously sarcastic as he picked at his lunch. "I hate to see what they throw at us after lunch!"

Harry shrugged, "She did warn us we weren't going to like a lot of what she had to say. As much as that might of biased us a bit, I'm glad she didn't try to sugar-coat it."

"I agree. I'd rather be told up front than find all this crap out at school," said the raven-haired Sally-Anne who was sitting across from Harry.

Hermione frowned, "It is a lot to take in. On one hand I can see the appeal of trying to try and make real change in society but then again it sounds like a lot of work with not a lot of payoff."

Lilith made a face, "I, for one, am interested in whatever they have in healing type science. I mean this birthrate problems seems to be something which might be fixed with in vitro fertilization. Just set up a fertility clinic and you're going to have more Magicals down the road."

Harry took a sip of the weird pumpkin juice, "I really don't think they think like that Lilith. Plus isn't that sort of thing pretty recent for the general public? Given how it seems this place could be out of the 16th century, I don't think the Magicals are up on newer medical science."

Mandy snorted before leaning in with a lowered voice, "I don't know how much Lilith's brother has told her but since it came out I'm actually from a pretty old family, I've had the last few years to learn quite a bit even if they still consider me a Muggleborn. While I'm sure what Lilith suggests would work, the elites would never go for it."

The teens around the table leaned in to hear what Mandy had to say with interest. Apparently Mandy was sort of like Harry in that she had a full magical father but her mother was a Muggle. Her father had turned his back on the Magical world and only had come back when his two brothers had died of something call Dragonpox making him the new heir to the modest House Brocklehurst.

Mandy looked over to where the two professors were chatting with a wizard from the Ministry who had showed up right as lunch started. Everyone had been surprised when McGonagall had said that she was giving them information which the Ministry would probably get angry about so it was given before he was expected to show up. The rest of the group of teens were animatedly talking at the other table.

Seeing that the adults weren't listening, Mandy turned back to those at her table, "You see it's like Professor McGonagall said, the magical world is based on power. Sure wealth and ability has its place but it all comes down to magical power. You saw what she did to the podium? Well my dad says that even after school, it's rare most Magicals could do what she did or at least as effortlessly as she made it seem."

"So?" Dean asked. "From what the Professors were saying, most of us Muggleborn tend to be stronger than average. You'd think they'd be lining up to have kids from people like us."

Before Mandy could reply, Lilith snorted, "Oh no; that would be logical. My family is Jewish and my brother said it's a good thing we're already trained to be discriminated against because that's exactly what is in store for us."

"Well that was pretty obvious from the lecture," Lisa said from next to Harry. "But why?"

"It's because a lot of the Magicals have this thing called Pureblood ideology. It says that the best way to get a powerful child is to marry into older bloodlines. So they do and while it may have worked for awhile back in the day…" Mandy explained.

"…they're becoming like the European royal families," Harry finished.

Both Lilith and Mandy nodded. "Pretty much. Yet a lot of these Purebloods have other cultural and economic reasons for what they do. Change is slow in the Magical world and with the pace of Muggle science and culture advancing, well as Professor McGonagall said, it's people like us who really are advancing the culture." Mandy said.

"And they hate us for it," Hermione said tartly. "I guess we should be surprised. The established order never likes change. I'm sure the horse and buggy industry didn't like to see the invention of the auto."

Justin, who had been quiet for much of lunch suddenly slapped the table, "I think you're all missing something big here. Yes McGonagall painted a pretty bleak picture of their world but it's not that bad. Think back on our history. Right before the Industrial Revolution, all the people who didn't take loyalty oaths were barred from owning land. Thus most of them went into trades few wanted. Thus when technology changed, they were in the right place to take advantage of it."

Everyone looked at Justin with curiosity. "Okay, so?" Sally-Anne asked what was on the minds of everyone at the table.

Justin frowned at everyone missing what he thought was obvious, "Look the Magical world seems just like England was right before the Industrial Revolution. Lots of powerful elites controlling things. Very rigid with little change allowed. Yet what happened as the Revolution started? A whole new group of people got rich because they were willing to change. It's like Lilith just said; there are probably a lot of things going on in the magical world which have a fix through stuff which is common knowledge to us but incomprehensible to them. This means opportunity."

Everyone seemed to lean closer at hear this.

Justin noticed this and smiled, "A lot of people got rich in the Industrial Revolution. Where do you think my family got its wealth from? We were a small, provincial bank but we had the foresight to front some money and take the risk in the new technologies. Now my family is rich, my dad's a Peer and we bought our home from some old landowner elite who couldn't keep up. That same opportunity is right in front of us!"

Lisa nodded at this while everyone else looked a bit blinkered by it. "Okay that makes complete sense Justin. But you heard what Professor Sprout said. The elites actively work to keep a lot of the change you are talking about from happening. The rules of this Wizengamot and the Ministry are in their favor."

Justin smile turned evil at this, "All too true. But we have an in."

Everyone turned to Hermione who had let out a breathy, "Oh!" at Justin's comment.

"What?" Lisa asked. It was apparent to Harry she resented not catching on as fast as the bushy-haired girl.

Hermione pointed at Harry, "Harry here might as well be a Muggleborn but he's really not."

The light dawned on Harry as he remembered one of the charts they had seen earlier, "Right! I'm the heir of the Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter!"

"Exactly!" Justin said. "You could be our inside man. If a lot of the things we want done can't be brought up to the Wizengamot by Muggleborn, you can!"

Harry nodded at this as the others began to chatter about the possibilities with Mandy and Lilith trying to answer questions given their more in-depth knowledge of the world they were about to enter.

It had been a shock to find out how feudal the magical world in the UK was. It was even more of a shock to find his father might be considered the equivalent of an major lord of old. Indeed his packet had included information about House Potter. Not only did he have a seat in the Wizengamot, but as the Earl of Yorkshire he also had a 'shadow' seat in Parliament.

Harry had to smirk to himself. Earlier he had worried about his poor upbringing wearing his cousin's cast-offs or cheap clothes he had bought with his wages from his after-school jobs. Now he was someone important and not because he supposedly offed some Dark Lord as a baby.

Of course that topic had barely been touched on yet and Harry was eager to learn more. So much smelled about the story he had heard so far from some of the comments made during the orientation so far and the little Lilith and Mandy had said when they sat down to lunch.

Harry looked at the clock. Perhaps after lunch, he'd get some answers about his parents he had wondered about all his life.

**XxXxX**

**Chapter Four Preview**: Orientation finishes up and Harry learns a bit about the extended family he didn't know he had. That and Harry's "saving people" thing activates as he makes a new friend.

**XxXxX**

**A/N**: This story keeps percolating around in my brain. I think one of the issues I'm having with stories like _Rejected Path_ and even, in some respects, _Paging Dr. Bell_ is that they are still tied closely to a lot of canon which just doesn't work. I think creatively stories where you can junk a lot of that are more appealing. This story will reflect a lot of that rejection. Oh well, at least in PDrB there are explanations for some of the oddities JKR left us with.

**Jumps**: I get a lot of reviewers bitching about "MOAR ACTION! LESS TALK!" So I've decided a lot of stuff I could just dump on you in chapters like this will be reveal more slowly. In doing so I freely admit there will be some level of uncertainty on part of you the reader. Please deal with it. If you can wait between seasons for answers, you can wait between chapters. If anything, I think people who read my fics know I explain things eventually.

**Justin at Eton**: A lot of reviewers have pointed out how badly Justin get's hosed socially and educationally in canon. By missing out on Eton, Justin is going to be really behind his social/economic peers. Here in this fic, at least, he got that out of the way.

**Mr. Comedy**: While Harry had a terrible upbringing, I found it odd that Harry had like a zero in the humor department. In the nature/nurture debate I can argue both ways. However I'd like to think Harry got more from James than just his looks.

12

**Touchy-Feely**: While influenced by Darth Marrs Firebird trilogy, my concept of why touching each other feels good comes more from my change from ideology based on blood purity to that of pure magical power. This is merely an aspect of that. 


	4. Rain on the Parade

**DISCLAIMER THE FIRST: **_It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion. It is by the grace of coffee that thoughts acquire speed, the back acquires strains, the strains become a warning. The warning is that I make no money from this. It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion. _

**PITHY STATEMENT RELATING TO THIS CHAPTER**: "_Bad news isn't wine. It doesn't get better with age._" **Colin Powell** – American 4 Star General and Secretary of State – 1937-

**Last Updated**: 04-24-2014

**XxXxX**

**CHAPTER FOUR – RAIN ON THE PARADE**

**XxXxX**

**THE LEAKY CAULDRON, LONDON – AUGUST 1****st**** 1998 – AFTERNOON**

Harry sipped his tea and fumed. He didn't trust himself to speak and luckily Professor McGonagall seemed perfectly willing to give him time to order his thoughts or at least get a hold of his anger. Luckily for the Scottish witch, dealing with his anger was something Harry had a lot of practice at.

With Dudley and his buddies bullying him when he was younger, Harry never looked away when others were being bullied. This led to an a him getting into a rather brutal fight with three boys who were teasing a young Vietnamese girl his second year at Stonewall. Harry found out later that she had trouble speaking English when stressed.

The result was three bullies who would steer clear of Harry and left Harry with some scars. Luckily the girl, Phan Thị Dao, introduced him to her grandfather's brother. Phan Văn Chu ran a local auto repair shop catering to American cars and he seemed to take a shine to the young teen. He had been in the Vietnam war and had done a lot of things he'd tell Harry he hoped a kid like him would never have to do.

Yet Mr. Chu had seen a bit of himself in Harry and in return for saving his grand-niece, he had begun to teach Harry martial arts. Yet it wasn't anything like Harry had expected. Mr. Chu was a hard task master and Harry soon learned that 'martial' meant pertaining to war and that's exactly what the old man taught.

So while a few of his Stonewall contemporaries were off taking taekwondo, karate or boxing like Dudley, Harry was learning stuff he figured wouldn't be out of place in the trench warfare in World War I. Mr. Chu's favorite phrase was, "_Never fight fair when you're fighting for your life_." Harry certainly wasn't learning how to fight by the Queen's rules that was for sure! Even Dudley stopped trying to 'spar' with Harry after the smaller teen had taken him down with frightening ease.

Yet it was Harry's anger which got Mr. Chu angry as well. Too many times he had whapped Harry on the head and reminded him that anger was a weapon only to one's opponent. So while he had learned a lot of nasty things (mostly relating to knives) from Mr. Chu, it was learning to rein in his anger which probably was the best gift from the old man.

Harry thought of the many ways the Vietnam vet had taught him to put his anger away for when he could deal with it. Taking a deep breath, Harry put down his tea cup and simply said, "So let me get this straight. This Mr. Dumbledore decided to leave me with the Dursleys over your objections. He felt it would be better that I have a normal childhood so I wouldn't become spoiled or arrogant due to my fame. Instead he left me to relatives who despise me and took this hatred out on me at every opportunity."

McGonagall winced at this but Harry cut her off before she could speak, "So while I understand Mr. Dumbledore is high up in your government, it seems to me that he just took it upon himself to do this with only a few people knowing. I understand that this was done to protect me from these 'Death Eaters' but in the long run I needed protection from my own relatives! So tell me, Professor, when did growing up in a highly abusive home become a normal childhood? I lived under a fucking cupboard under the stairs for God's sake!"

McGonagall bit back a gasp but still paled at this before sighing and looking like to Harry as if she was slowly deflating as she sagged in her chair. "I warned him, Mr. Potter. I told him the Dursleys were the worst sort of Muggles."

"But did you do anything after that?" Harry said hotly. "You knew where I was! This Hagrid knew as well. Were you going to be put into prison for telling others of this anti-Voldemort group my parents were in? Okay I can see that these blood wards may have kept me from being murdered but there is a lot more to life than just being alive! Where the bloody hell were you lot when my uncle was taking a belt to me over things Dudley did? Where were you when my aunt would tell everyone how much of a 'problem child' I was so everyone in the neighborhood mistrusted me?"

McGonagall flush in shame and looked away.

Harry's face hardened at this show of shame. Yet Mr. Chu had always taught to follow through with an attack and Harry wasn't in anything resembling a forgiving mood. "I didn't start to have a normal life till I went to Stonewall and it took me threatening them to get that! Looking back, I think my magic showed and it scared them! So all those years not one of you lot could come in and tell my relatives to back off? Well you go tell your headmaster that he succeeded. I'm not arrogant nor spoiled. What I am is brassed off and the _**only**_ reason I'm going to Hogwarts is because I need to learn how I'm different and the fact my tuition is being paid for by the trust fund my parents set up."

The old witch finally met Harry's fiery gaze, "Mr. Potter, I don't know what to say..."

"Well that's good because I don't think there is anything you _**can**_ say. How did you rationalize leaving a 15 month kid on the doorstep like a rack of milk for God's sake? I'm supposedly this big hero and savior and yet I didn't rate you and Mr. Dumbledore actually talking to my relatives? Lilith told me earlier that she heard from her brother that you Magicals aren't much of a logical bunch but this takes the cake! You _**LEFT ME**_ on the doorstep like the morning paper and just assumed the Dursleys would take care of me! They could have dumped me in a rubbish bin like you see on the news some times! All because your Headmaster made a decision I doubt was his to make."

McGonagall flushed face darkened as her face switched from shame to anger, "Now see here, Mr. Potter..."

"See what?" Harry retorted angrily. "You talked for over an hour about the purebloods. Okay my dad was a pureblood from an ancient family. Simple logic states that I have other relatives other than the Dursleys. Okay so maybe for safety I need to stay with them. Who gave Dumbledore the right to cut me off from the rest of my family? What about my parent's friends? You and the Headmaster cut us all out from each other!"

McGonagall looked at a loss for what to say. Luckily this gave Harry a chance to take a deep breath and once again rein in the anger which was seething and just begging to be released. Worse was he was attracting notice. While they were on a break as they waited for the Gringotts representative to arrive, there was still plenty of people in the room and the angry tone of voice was attracting attention.

Harry sighed heavily, "Look Professor, obviously this is a lot for me to take in at once and right now I'm not emotionally ready to deal with it. What I can say is that you had better tell your Headmaster that I don't care if he's the Grand Poobah of the Sizzlepot or whatever and he can be Merlin's second cousin for all I care, but I will not allow him or _**anyone**_ to mess with my life again. I get even the hint of this and I'm gone."

McGonagall's eyebrows shot up at this but Harry cut her off again before she could say anything. "From what you and Professor Sprout said, having someone as famous as me up and denounce your lot and stay away is going to go over like a fart in church. Well I'm perfectly willing to be that crass. I had plans prior to my Hogwarts letter. It will be rough but I'll be damned that after I what survived through that I would let Dumbledore or whoever think they can dictate my life."

Before McGonagall could reply, a shadow fell over the booth they were in. Both looked up to see the concerned face of Professor Sprout looking down at them. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but the Gringotts rep is on his way. I doubt you want to be seen with a very irate Mr. Potter, Minerva. Percival is getting suspicious enough as it is although I think I've deflect him so the Ministry won't hear anything."

The transfiguration professor pursed her lips, "Just so. Thank you Pomona. I feel for now that we have gone as far as we can. Anything further will have to come from the Headmaster anyway."

"Oh yeah, that's going to be a fun conversation," Harry said with sarcastic contempt.

McGonagall frowned at this but simply took up her pointy hat and left the booth towards the fireplace which supposedly was connected to something call the Floo network. Harry took another sip of his tea before he realized that the Herbology teacher hadn't left. "What?" he asked heedless of how rude he sounded.

Sprout smiled. It was one part sad and one part amused. "It's been a long time since I've seen Minerva so riled up. From what I've gather over the years, I'm betting she let the Headmaster talk her into doing something against her principles."

Harry scowled at this. He didn't want the witch's pity even if she seemed a really good sort of lady. "Principles or not, she allowed my life to get shit down the loo. Forgive me if I'm not feeling rather charitable for her feelings."

Sprout frowned at this but she didn't seem angry at Harry's words. Instead she slid into the booth. "I can't say I know what's going on because for the most part I ignore the Headmaster. He has been called a great man and in a sense I guess he is. Yet he has far too many irons in the fire. Me? I am a teacher and in many ways surrogate parent to my students. I keep my focus on that. It has served me well but in your case perhaps myself and my fellow teachers should have asked a few more questions after the war and not taken Headmaster's word that he had taken care of things."

Harry almost made an angry retort at this. Yet Mr. Chu's words about not going out of one's way to make an enemy gave him pause. With another deep breath, Harry simply said, "Well I guess it would be hypocritical of me to yell at one professor for going past her duties as a teacher to yell at another for doing just her job."

Spout laughed at this, "Very good, Mr. Potter. You will find we Magicals are passionate people. For whatever reason, we seem to feel emotions more deeply than Muggles. We fall in love at first sight, we hate deeply and we hold grudges for centuries. It is good to see you are willing to listen and not jump to conclusions. Sadly this happens infrequently in our world. Indeed if you do go to Hogwarts, I will warn you that your potions classes will probably not be pleasant."

Harry frowned at this, "Why not? I liked chemistry and I'm a good cook. I'd think potions would be one of the things a Muggle-raised like myself would be good at."

Sprout laughed again, this time bitterly. "Oh I'm sure you will do fine. If you're anything like your mother, you probably will be top of your class. The problem is the teacher. He was a contemporary of your parents. In fact Severus grew up near your mother and they were friends prior to getting their Hogwarts letter. Unfortunately not only did they have a falling out, but you look amazingly like the man who beat him out for your mother's affections."

Harry rolled his eyes, "Un-fucking-believable. So this Severus is going to hate me because my mum married the guy I look like? After all these years he still holds a grudge?"

Sprout shrugged, "I cannot say for certain but...oh bollocks yes I can. Professor Snape is a potions prodigy but he is a terrible human being. Why the Headmaster hired him, keeps him on and even made him head of House Slytherin over other faculty members remains a mystery to me. I just wanted to warn you that you can bet he will dislike you from the minute he sees the resemblance to your father."

"Today is just turning out to be a shit sandwich with a side of fuck-all," Harry said exasperatedly.

Sprout smiled warmly, "I know Mr. Potter. In fact I dread doing these briefings even as I love seeing all the new blood. It just saddens me to see the likes of Ms. Granger or Mr. Finch-Fletchley, who both have so much to bring into our world, will find discrimination and worse. However we do what we can with the tools we are given. Your life has been a tragedy; it's obvious to me and Minerva was somehow involved. I can't tell you to just get over it and move one. All I ask is you look at Hogwarts as a new start. You are the last in a long line of Potters with a history stretching back to when history merges into legend. You may not owe our world anything but I do believe your ancestor's memories, all their dreams and deeds are worth making an attempt."

Harry blinked at this. In a way it reminded him of Mr. Chu who often spoke of his ancestors as if they were merely in the other room and not long, long dead. Yet he acted like his actions could bring down their wrath at times.

Sprout's smile faded, "They will see you as the Boy-Who-Lived as I'm sure you've already seen. I'm just asking you try to be a Potter for your family's name if nothing else. We've lost too many families; I'd hate to see the Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter fade due to the Headmaster's penchant to meddle."

Harry starred at the older witch for a moment before quirking a smile, "I guess your speech makes sense coming from the head of House Hufflepuff if what I read in your brochures was right."

Sprout looked surprised before chuckling, "Oh my! I guess I was giving a duty and loyalty speech wasn't I?"

Harry chuckled as well, "Not surprising and I'm not offended. I could tell you and Professor McGonagall were really trying to pretty up a bad situation before the Gringotts guy shows up. In this case, you're just telling me things a mentor of mine has often talked about."

"Oh?" Sprout asked.

"He's a Vietnam vet; I kept his grand-niece from being bullied. He's taught me a few things over the year. I think I was his hobby since I could tell he misses Vietnam. In fact if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have been so calm with Professor McGonagall. He's talked quite a few times about honoring one's ancestors."

Sprout nodded at this, "Ah yes well that is quite common in Asia, the magical community even more so. Here in Europe, ghosts are usually those who refuse to pass on due to a fear of death. In Asia, ghosts are often those who elect to stay on for a time to help pass on tradition and lore. A good friend of mine in Thailand had a great-great-great grandfather as her mentor. I envy her as Hogwarts' own ghost teacher is a lot less…aware as my friend's ghostly teacher."

"Really? Wow I wish I could tell Mr. Chu that. I'm sure he'd shudder at thinking that some of his family might have hung around. He came from a military family and sometimes from the stories they were a bit…excessive in passing on their training."

"Ha! Sounds like a family of Mad-Eye Moodys," Sprout said with another chuckle. At Harry's confused look she elaborated. "Alastor Moody is a retired auror, in fact I'm pretty sure he was one of your father's teacher at Auror school. He's a tad paranoid and his training exercises are rather notorious. I'd not like to think of a man like Moody hanging around as a teacher!"

Before Harry could reply, the flames in the fireplace flared green and before his astonished eyes, a short squat man with a briefcase came out of the fireplace like a shot. He landed with practice ease. While Harry had been warned, he couldn't help but blink in surprise. Hearing about magic was one thing; seeing it another. Being told the Gringotts representative was a goblin was nothing like actually seeing it.

The goblin seemed unfazed at all the stares from the teenagers present and quickly went over to were he saw Professor McGonagall was sitting with Percival Bentwhistle, the Ministry official.

A moment later the floo flared again but this time the figure did not land like a Olympic champion. This time the person, a witch Harry saw, landed on her feet and then promptly fell on her face.

"Oh Tonks!" Sprout sighed as the pink-haired witch moaned a bit before rolling over and getting to her feet. "I would have thought the Auror academy would have taught you some grace."

"You know her?" Harry asked. He noticed this Tonks was dressed in what looked like no-nonsense reddish robe which looked to his eye like it probably doubled as armor. Mr. Chu kept some boiled leather armor on hand for certain types of sparring. His son liked to work with leather and he said it was cheaper than trying to buy hockey or American football pads. The witch's robe seem to have a feeling of that protective leather.

"Oh yes. She was one of my Badgers. Class of '91with top honors in transfigurations. She might be a bit clumsy but she's scary with a wand. That and she's a full metamorphmagus which is rather rare."

"A what?" Harry asked as he gave the witch another look.

"A metamorphmagus can alter their appearance. Most can only make minor changes but Tonks can do a great deal more," Sprout explained. "It's a born trait and not one you can learn so the Aurors were eager to get her to do infiltration missions."

The witch in question seemed to sense she was being talked about as she looked over at them and then surprisingly waved. It was hitting Harry that she was just waving at Sprout when the witch's face lit up in surprise. She pointed at him and then at Sprout while mouthing, _is that him?_

Before Harry could groan, Sprout surprised him with a laugh as she nodded at the younger witch. She then turned to Harry, "Don't worry Mr. Potter. She's not some obsessive fan. She's a cousin of yours."

Harry looked at Sprout quickly before looking back at the younger witch. She smiled at him and gave him a thumbs up before turning and going over to the table where the goblin was looking over some document the Ministry representative had given him. Once the break was over, the goblin was going to give them a lecture about Gringotts and a small primer on the magical economy in general. Magic, apparently, turned on its head so many principles of labor, materials and the like so the goblins had pushed for these briefings to help keep the galleons flowing or so Professor McGonagall had said.

"Cousin? In what way?" Harry asked. While his voice was calm, internally Harry was seething. Almost minutes after asking about relatives, one shows up!

Sprout bit her lip for a moment while she looked at the ceiling for a moment. "Let me see…hmmm. Your great-grandmother was Dorea Black. Her eldest brother Pollux had a son Cygnus who had in turn three girls. Tonks' mother Andromeda is the eldest of those sisters. The youngest, Narcissa, has a son starting this year."

"Tonks is a rather odd name," Harry said. Never mind names like Andromeda or Narcissa! He wondered if the man McGonagall said betrayed his family was related to him as well but decided now wasn't the time to ask such a question.

Sprout laughed, "Oh Tonks isn't her name. Oh well that's not true. Tonks is her surname. Andromeda Black was a Slytherin pureblood who shocked everyone by falling in love with a Ravenclaw muggleborn. She eloped with Theodore Tonks and got thrown out of the family for it. She just hates her given name; Nymphadora."

"Nymphadora?!" Harry said with a laugh. And here he thought Narcissa was bad!

"Yes, well I'm sure you will tease her about it…once. Remember Mr. Potter, she took the top spot in transfigurations in her year and has been through the Auror Academy. On top of that I'm sure her mother taught her quite a few dark tricks from the Black family. She's not one to tease lightly. Of course other than hating her name, Tonks is a wonderful girl. I'm betting she got this duty today in order to talk to you. I know that Andromeda and Ted worked hard to gain custody of you and given that he's a lawyer, you can well imagine the lengths they went to."

Harry frowned, "Why would they go through the trouble?"

Sprout hesitated before sighing, "I'm sorry Mr. Potter; I didn't mean to bring it up given what you've learned today. Sirius Black is the grandson of Pollux. He was named your godfather by your father. Andromeda felt that since Sirius was cast out like she was for going against the pureblood ideology of House Black, that it would make sense that she and Ted would have best claim to raise you given Sirius being in prison."

Harry's frown turned into a scowl, "Okay this is getting confusing. So supposedly my godfather betrayed my parents. Yet from what McGonagall said, he gave me to this Hagrid guy before running off after this Petticoat guy."

"Pettigrew. Peter Pettigrew," Sprout corrected him gently.

"Right…Pettigrew. Well if my godfather was such a rat bastard that he'd betray a man Professor McGonagall said was like a brother, whose family took him in, then why let me live? Seems like a guy who killed twenty people on top of betraying his best mate wouldn't have a problem offing a fifteen month kid like me, godson or not."

Sprout sighed, "It is a mystery. All I can say is Sirius is in Azkaban after his trial. He's never given any reason for his actions and mostly is just belligerent when talked to. I have heard that the guards are surprised he's done so well. Apparently he's even attacked other Death Eaters in the yard when he gets a chance which mean he gets time with the Dementors."

Harry made a face, "Now that doesn't sound good. Do I want to know what a Dementor is?"

Sprout face darkened, "They are terrible beings and England is one of the few who use them. They feed on positive emotions and if they grab you, they can suck your soul out in what's called the Dementor's Kiss. People rarely live long after their soul has been stolen from them. Prisoners being punished are moved to a special wing where the Dementors roam the corridors. Sirius has been there many times yet seems strangely unaffected. Very different from the likes of Andromeda's younger sister Bellatrix. While some would say she was mad going into Azkaban, there is no doubt she is beyond insane now as she has been a 'guest' of the Dementors quite often due to her hair-trigger temper."

"Yikes! I thought solitary confinement sounded bad. These Dementors push that right up to eleven," Harry said. He paused a moment, "Do you think I'll be able to see this Sirius Black? Even if he doesn't say anything useful, I'd like to meet the man, look into his eyes and ask him why he betrayed my parents."

Sprout got up as it was apparent that the goblin was starting to set up for his presentation, "Talk to Tonks before you leave. I'm sure she will know. It might be that that's why she's here. I mean it doesn't take a Ravenclaw to predict you'd probably want to meet the man after you learned of what happened that Halloween."

**OoOoO**

Harry finished his drink and made a decision. The rest of the group was either off for a bathroom break or talking quietly among themselves while they waited for the next round of presentations to be set up. Finding himself alone for a moment, Harry had decided to satisfy his curiosity. Luckily the 'drama' of Dean Thomas finding out that Auror Shacklebolt was actually his uncle meant that a lot of teens were listening to the Auror tell the tale of how his brother had fallen in love with a Squib and left the magical world. He was later killed in the same war which claimed Harry's parents.

So with the likes of Lisa, Justin and Hermione distracted, Harry slowly made his way to the anomaly in the room. Paul Runcorn stood out in a subtle way. His clothes were off, his manner was off and there was an air of menace to the boy that Harry thought he recognized.

He had to know.

He manage to slide into the seat next to the sullen teen before Runcorn realized he was there. As expected the teen stiffened and a furtive movement of his right hand made Harry smile, "So what do you got stashed away?"

The boy looked at Harry in surprised, "What? What do you mean?"

Harry gave Runcorn a knowing look, "I mean what are you packing? Gun or knife? I'm betting knife. I've got a Ka-Bar myself. Never go anywhere without it."

Runcorn's face grew wary, 'I don't know what you're talking about."

"Of course you do," Harry responded easily. "Look, I'm not interested in ratting you out especially since I've got one myself."

"How do you know I'm armed," Runcorn finally asked after a long pause.

"You look like it. Listen, I had a crappy childhood and I had to learn to protect myself pretty quickly. After I ran into a spot of trouble, I got introduced to someone who taught me how to fight. He was the one who gave me my Ka-Bar. I try not to think about how he killed the guy he took it from but he was a soldier at the time. Anyway, I keep my eyes open and you look like someone who is used to living rough and having to protect yourself. You and me, well we stand out don't we?"

Runcorn eyes narrowed at this as he glanced around the room. "It's all posh here. Money, cream looks and the latest fashion things. From what I overheard earlier, the only reason that Moon girl is dressed weird is she's actually wearing some Wizarding clothes her brother got her. Even so, she's a looker."

Harry laughed, "Well you and I aren't bad looking blokes but yeah, while apparently I'm rather well off due to my parents, I didn't grow up with two pence to rub together till I went to secondary and got to keep any money I made."

Harry had been shocked when the goblin had passed him a folder which held a summary of his trust fund and his family's estate. While an adult in both the Magical and mundane world, Gringotts would not release full control over his estate until he could pass a test to show he understood the various ins-and-outs of the magical economy.

When asked, the goblin had shrugged and only said that Muggleborn while starting behind usually had a better grasp of money than most wizard kind. He didn't think Harry would have much trouble getting past his test by the end of his first year at Hogwarts

Harry also realize that the Dursleys had no idea about the wealth that Harry had access to. If they had, Harry was sure they would have treated him like a prince growing up in hopes of cashing in on some of it as repayment for raising him. Even cut off from the main estate till he could pass the test, Harry's trust fund ensured he had little to worry about money wise.

Runcorn snorted at his comment, "I doubt anyone in this room has every wanted for money. Yeah some of them may not be rich kids like that bird you are hanging with or the banker's kid, but I doubt they'd last long on the streets."

Harry's eyes narrowed at this. Runcorn had just confirmed Harry's guess about him. "Look, Paul, can I call you Paul?"

Runcorn tensed at this but finally nodded.

"Look you don't know me from Adam but let's be frank here. You're homeless, right?"

Runcorn's eyes flew open in shock, "How could you know that?"

Harry sighed, "Calm down Paul. I know because of your clothes. You got them from a place that lends out clothes to homeless types trying to get work, right? I had to use the same type of place when I started looking for work as all I had to wear was my cousin's cast-offs and he weighs like two stone on me. Plus, I told you, I keep my eyes open and I've found that helping people who need a hand can really come in handy."

Harry had helped this homeless family with some food which might have gotten tossed at the Superstore he worked at. The father repaid this favor by running off Piers Porkiss who took over the gang when Dudders decided boxing was more important than being a delinquent. Unfortunately Piers was a nasty shit-stain of a thug and he and his mates might have really hurt Harry if he hadn't been driving off with a cricket bat to the head.

Runcorn just stared at Harry silently.

"Anyway the reason I came over is I figured that you and I are sort of in the same boat if I was right about you. My relatives are going to kick me out the second they learn I know about magic because I think they knew I was a wizard and they resented it. So I figure that since I've got money, I could get a place or something till school starts. I figured you might want a better place to stay," Harry explained.

Runcorn just looked at Harry. Harry decided to wait him out and just stared back.

"A Fairbain-Sykes," Paul finally said.

"What?" Harry asked.

"You asked me what I'm carrying. It's a Fairbain-Sykes. It was my great-grandfather's. It's about all I have from my family before my step-dad kicked me out," Runcorn explained. "While my great-grandfather might not have been SAS, he was in some hodge-podge irregular group fighting in Burma. My gramps told me all the stories."

"Ah, okay I see. Sorry, you just threw me there for a second. Yeah that's a good knife. So I take it your great-grandfather did all that ungentlemanly warfare sort of thing?" Harry asked.

Paul shrugged, "The Japs weren't playing nice so our side didn't either. It wasn't an official thing but they got the job done. I also have a kukri my gramps got gifted to him but that needs a new handle.

"Cool! Mr. Chu loves those."

"Mister Chew?" Paul asked with an raised eyebrow.

"No, Mister Chu, less of an 'oo' and more of 'schoo' since he's Vietnamese. I was thinking we might be able to hang at his garage. He's got a living area above it that's alright. He mostly uses it to crash if he's had too many after work or if he has guests from out of town."

"Friend of yours?" Paul asked.

Harry nodded. "Saved his grand-niece from bullies. He's the guy who taught me about knives and how to protect myself. He's cool. You'd like him. He's like old school Vietnam vet and he's not going to look down his nose at you for being homeless. Hell, he'll like you more because it proves your resourceful and can take care of yourself."

Paul nodded at this. "Well I can't believe I'm saying this but okay, I'll take you up on the offer."

Harry frowned, "It might be because of my aura."

"Your what?" Runcorn asked.

Harry looked guilty, "My magical aura. During lunch Lilith was telling us about magical auras and how people with strong auras tend to make people respond better to them. She's had quite a few years to read up on stuff since her older brother is already at Hogwarts. Apparently not only have I gone from penniless to really well off, I also seem to have a lot of magic. Lisa Turpin said she felt it considering I pretty much walked up to her at Heathrow and she immediately took a shine to me even though I was a complete stranger."

Paul frowned, "I'm not sure I like the sound of that."

Harry nodded, "I know! Bad enough Mandy Brocklehurst was telling us about compulsion spells, love potions and all sorts of ways to fiddle with people's minds. Fuck me running it sounds like the magical world is one big mind rape waiting to happen. But as much as learning magic sounds pretty brill I have to say it seems like you can get righteously screwed over if you're not careful."

Paul surprised Harry by laughing at this, "Yeah well that goblin hinted pretty strongly that the unwary ended up in early graves." He looked around the room again before shaking his head. "I almost feel sorry for this lot. They're soft. They're all pretty, probably got good families and money. Not to sure how they'll stand up when the shit really hits the fan. You heard the Professors; these purebloods are going to treat us like my step-dad treats the dot-heads. I doubt Justin Money-Bags over there is going to take that too well. You can bet those purebloods are going to treat him like he probably treats his domestics."

Harry sighed. Firstly at Paul's slur against Indians given how Harry was good friends with the family that ran the Gurkha Kitchen (and odd name given how they were Indians and not from Nepal) but also at the truth in the teen's words. While Granger seemed the type to have been ostracized for being a bookworm, he doubted many of the people he'd meet would be prepared for the abuse Harry was sure to come once they set foot in Hogwarts.

"You're right. All the more reason to stick together. We help them, they help us, we protect each other."

Paul laughed again, "You sound like Professor Sprout."

Harry shrugged, "I'm okay with loyalty. Besides Mr. Chu says bravery is for people too stupid to recognize they should have already been running away from a fight they can't win. I don't think I'm smart enough for this Ravenclaw House and while I've got plenty of ambition, it sounds like most people in this Slytherin House would slit my throat for what I did to this so-called Dark Lord."

Paul nodded, "You got that right. Can't get too far in life without at least someone to watch your back." He looked at Harry with an odd look on his face. "Seems like you've managed it."

Harry frowned, "Badly till I met Mr. Chu. Before that no one gave a damn about me." He stuck out his hand, "How about we agree to try and look out for each other for now?"

Paul rolled his eyes and frowned comically as he shook Harry's hand, "Why do I think I'm going to regret this?"

**XxXxX**

**Chapter Five Preview**: Tonks gets a surprise while raiding the Black library and learns that things are not as they seem.

**XxXxX**

**A/N**: In many respects, I really should drop the chapter preview as it is often wrong. Oh well, it's not like I don't have to go back and make updates and corrections anyways.

**Never fight fair when you're fighting for your life**: I got told this by a guy who would teach self-defense techniques to high security prison guards. He also was the first Baron of Fett Burg for you SCAdian types. As was said in the movie Patton, the trick isn't dying for your country; it's making the other poor bastard die for his. Of course right before the 41st Brigade deployed to Afghanistan in support of Task Force Phoenix V, BG Pritt told us our job wasn't to die for our country but to teach the Afghan soldiers how to do so for _their_ country. Our job was to do that and come home. While dying heroically sounds good in sagas, it's a sucker's bet. You fight heroically and THEN go home and hopefully much later die a 'straw death' in bed. I'm sure Odin takes all those warriors as well given how the fought and survived.

**Knives**: The Ka-Bar (technically the KA-BAR™) is the knife developed for the U.S. Marine Corps in WW II and still in use today. The Fairbairn-Sykes was a commando knife developed prior to WW II by two Brits working with the Shanghai Municipal Police. It was uses by the SAS and airborne units. A kukri is an awesome "knife" used by the Gurkhas of Nepal. I say "knife" because it's more like a small hand-axe.

People watching period films will often wonder how anyone could stand Napoleonic tactics type tactics of walking into enemy fire in nice neat, orderly formations. Psychologically it is because you can't see death coming. Knives, on the other hand, are another thing entirely. A Prussian general once remarked that all European armies boasted that none stood up to their bayonet charges and they were all correct.

The reason is it is one thing to charge into bullets. It's another to stand your ground when someone is about to stick a foot of sharpened steel into your gut and twist. Not a good way to die and even seasoned troops usually broke rather than duke it out in no-holds-barred bayonet fight. Thus Harry learned from Mr. Chu that the _**threat**_ of a knife was usually all it took to get people to back off him. Plus I'm sure Harry had a "Crocodile Dundee" moment when someone like Piers Porkiss pulls a switchblade on him. "That's not a knife. _**THIS**_ is a knife!"

13

**Slang & Slurs**: Obviously Runcorn calling the Japanese 'Japs' or Indians 'dot-heads' is hardly politically correct. Yet in this case I see him picking the term up from his grandfather's stories and since he's never actually met any Japanese, he's hardly had a chance to have his use corrected. That and while in London I heard quite a few things white Londeners would say about Indians/Pakistanis without seeming to realize how bigoted they sounded. Sort of like how so many soldiers would refer to Iraqis (or any Middle Easterner) or Afghans as "Hadjis" Sadly an author has to write things or in ways they don't like simply to make the characters come to life. 


	5. Of Fate and Family

**DISCLAIMER THE FIRST: **_It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion. It is by the grace of coffee that thoughts acquire speed, the back acquires strains, the strains become a warning. The warning is that I make no money from this. It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion. _

**PITHY STATEMENT RELATING TO THIS CHAPTER**: "_Luke, you're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view_." **Obi Wan Kenobi** – Jedi Master, and General of the Grand Alliance Army – 57-0 BBY

**Last Updated**: 05-03-2014

**XxXxX**

**CHAPTER FIVE – OF FATE AND FAMILY**

**XxXxX**

**Chapter Note**: Just a reminder, I put the _place, date_ headers into the story for a reason. This chapter starts a block of flashbacks. You won't be confused if you don't gloss over those headers.

**XxXxX**

**GRIMMAULD PLACE, LONDON – JULY 4****th**** – MORNING **

"Nasty missy bez back, Kreacher sees. Probably to steal from the Ancient and Noble House of Black again," the old elf said from deep within the shadows of the entryway corridor.

Tonks couldn't help but roll her eyes, "Kreacher, when have I ever taken anything from here? You damn well know the only two items I've ever taken was two books and I asked you if I could borrow them before I took them! I brought back right after my Auror exam."

The elf simply sniffed with disdain at this but said nothing.

Tonks glared at the elf, "You know this place is a mess, right? If you are so proud of House Black, then why can't you keep it in better shape? What do you think your precious Bellatrix would think if she were to walk through the door right now? I know for a fact Aunt Cissy would probably have a stroke."

This time the elf hissed before disappearing in a pop.

Tonks sighed. She didn't want to antagonize Kreacher but over the years of sneaking into Grimmauld Place Tonks had found hitting him below the belt seemed to work the best. As long as Tonks praised his efforts, the old elf would be tolerable for awhile. It might just be the longer she was in the house, the more of her magic would prop up the faded magic.

As she climbed the stairs, she once again wondered how the townhouse had gotten so bad so quickly. Given the long lives of Magicals, the two decades since the house was lived in was but a blink considering this house had (in one form or another) been continuously lived in by at least one Black family member for a few centuries. The magic shouldn't have faded so quickly.

As always she tried not to look at the line of elf heads along the corridor as she made her way to the library. Dawlish had dumped this absolute shit of a case on her but she would get the last laugh. In going over the evidence, Tonks had remembered a spell she'd read about years ago. She was confident that after refreshing her memory of it, she could use it to crack the case. Then John "I'm So Very Important" Dawlish would find himself shown up by the squad's youngest auror! Game, set and match to House Black!

While her mum rarely spoke of it around her father, Andromeda was fiercely proud of being a Black and disowned or not, she had passed the family lore to her. People always underestimated her since her personality was very much the happy-go-lucky type of her father. They didn't realize the cackle the Sorting Hat had let out right before sorting her into Hufflepuff was because it approved of such a Slytherin plot to hide an ambitious snake among the house of loyal badgers.

Tonks would be loyal daughter to House Black as her mother had taught her. It was this loyalty which made her question how badly her mother had been cast out given she had stupidly broken into Grimmauld Place when she was ten. As an Auror, Tonks now knew how so very lucky she was to be alive.

This had led her to discover that while turned out, neither her mother nor Sirius were actually disowned. This gave her the wiggle room she had been using ever since to raid the Black library. Of course Grimmauld Place was only the London home of House Black. Tonks knew that the Black Manor could only be opened by the head of House Black. Who that was, exactly was in limbo given Sirius was in prison. Her parents had been working for a long time to try and clear this mystery up. Even having the family head fall to someone like Draco Malfoy was better than having the ancestral manor become locked away for all time.

As Grimmauld Place was more a 'working home' for when the Wizengamot was in session (or a possible home for those working in the Ministry) Tonks' presence wasn't a danger. Of course she was always careful to explain to Kreacher what she was doing and why. She was sure that the only reason he had allowed her to borrow the books she had was because of who her mother was. Kreacher seemed to have a soft spot (or at least a least flinty one) in his dark heart for the daughters of Cygnus Black. The last thing Tonks wanted was for the wards to see her as a thief.

Tonks stopped at the door to the library and looked at the portrait across the hall. If she didn't know better, one could almost think it was a Muggle painting. It was so still; so unlike the raving portrait of Walpurga Black downstairs. She shook her head and frowned. So much of Grimmauld Place was a mystery. It projected one thing but the histories told to her by her mother and found in the pages of the books in the library told another.

With a sigh, Tonks reminded herself that faster she was in and out, the better dealing with Kreacher would be. Yet just as she was opening the door, she heard a pop behind her. Before she could even turn her head, a spell hit her in the back and she fell into darkness.

**OoOoO**

Tonks groaned as she came too. It hadn't been that long ago when she was in training so certain tests were fresh in her mind. So much so that she'd barely woken up and already she knew she was tied to a chair.

"Ah, you are awake. You may go Kreacher," an aristocratic voice said from somewhere high up and to her left."

"By youz command," Kreacher's voice said before a pop announced he'd left.

Tonks kept her head down and barely open her eyes to do a quick scan. Escape and evasion class had always said the first moments waking up in a situation like this were critical. Unfortunately whoever held her prisoner seemed to know this as well.

"There is no need for you to be coy, Nymphadora. Within these walls, you cannot escape unless we decide to free you. However if you prove yourself a daughter of House Black, we shall release you."

Again the voice sounded like they were on a balcony. Curious Tonks fully opened her eyes and looked up and blinked in surprise. First off she was in a room she'd never seen before at Grimmauld Place (if that is indeed where she still was) and that the person talking to her was one of many portraits on the wall.

Looking around, Tonks realized all of them were famous Blacks. She recognized every nameplate as important movers and shakers of her family. A quick glance around the room at the many artifacts and bookshelves made Tonks realize where she might be. There had long been rumors, her mother had often said, of a private den that only the Head of House Black could go. A room for secret meetings and such. Tonks couldn't help but think this is where she was now.

A stately looking woman wearing a fashion favored in the 14th century looked down at her and gestured at her bonds, "If you are willing to give your oath not to use your wand, we shall gladly release you. We have much to discuss. However to do this properly, we have to use…unusual methods which we cannot risk."

Tonks looked around the room at the dozen or so portraits. They all had the same haughty look the Blacks were so known for. She'd seen it often enough on her mother's face when she was dealing with people she didn't respect or when she was being punished. Yet she didn't get a sense of anger from any of the body language…if that was the proper term considering they were all portraits.

"Why am I here?" Tonks asked. She needed more information!

A man in ornate armor which had been enameled black spoke up. His nameplate said Arcturus Julius Black. Tonks knew he was one of the most important of her ancestors given how he (along with the Potters and other families like the Longbottoms and Marchbanks) had fought the 1066 invaders to a bloody stalemate which was finally ended by the truce which led to the creation of the Wizengamot.

"You are here, Nymphadora, because events foretold long ago are finally unfolding. House Black has always used what tools which are at hand and right now one of those tools is you," Arcturus replied.

Tonks surprised herself by laughing even if she knew it was a stupid thing to do. "Excuse me? I'm a disgraced daughter of a witch thrown out of House Black. So I'm not sure why you think I'd help." As much as her previous thoughts of House loyalty, suddenly she found the shabby treatment of her mother, always a dutiful daughter even in disgrace, rankled her.

A witch laughed in response. Tonks couldn't see her nameplate but judging by her clothes she thought she might be Lyra Black, mother of Phineas Black, one time Headmaster of Hogwarts. "Things are not always as they seem, my dear Nymphadora. Yes you are a daughter to a disgraced daughter. But did Arcturus _disown _your mother? Did he disown your cousin Sirius?"

Tonks nodded at this, "So there _was_ a reason my mother or Sirius weren't formally thrown out of the family. I knew it!"

The portrait laughed again, "Ah good, your thoughts are already going down the right path. I myself 'disowned' my youngest daughter Isla in much the same way as your mother was. As I said, things are not as they seem and the reasons so many Blacks were cast aside is a dangerous secret. If you take an oath not to use your wand, you can learn the answer to many things few Blacks are privileged to."

Tonks looked around at all the portraits. Again she was struck by how none of her ancestor's faces showed much in the way of emotion (they were mostly Slytherins after all) but again she didn't feel any sense of menace. "I will give my oath. Yet I'll need to use my wand. It seems we're sort of at an impasse if you want me to take an oath not to use my wand when I have to use my wand to take the oath."

This caused a few of the portraits to chuckle. Arcturus seemed pleased as he said, "Very good, Nymphadora. Being aware of a paradox is a sign of a well ordered mind. It is obvious that your mother has raised you well. Of course your father was a Ravenclaw and a lawyer as well."

Tonks eyebrows went up in shock as her hair went from pink to a shade of blue she had unsuccessfully tried to avoid when she was baffled. "How do you know that?"

"Before we can tell you that, we shall need an oath from you, Nymphadora," Arcturus chided.

Tonks looked around again before making her decision, "Very well. You have my oath on my mother's name I shall only use my wand to make needed binding oath."

"Excellent!" Arcturus said and with a wave, her bonds fell away. How this way, Tonks had no clue. She'd never heard of portraits ever having anything like this level of control. It had to be tied to the house. As Tonks got up and stretched out the kinks, she realized this might be why the house seemed to have been losing its magic. It hadn't, just had the energy moved to this room for something more important.

She took out her wand, "What do you want me to swear?"

"We need you to swear you shall not use magic in this room unless you feel you life is in danger. Also that you shall tell no one of what you have seen without our permission." Now that she was standing, Tonks could see the witch was indeed Lyra Black.

Tonks thought that over, "Okay, that sounds fair." She made the oath and felt the magic tingle around her body.

"Take a seat Nymphadora. This will be startling to you but rest assured no harm will come to you. It will also answer how we know so much," Arcturus said. He made another wave of his hand and an ornate chair appeared before the one Tonks sat back down into.

A scraping noise to her left made her turn and she couldn't help put gasp. A portion of the wall was sliding back to reveal a man. He was dressed in clothing Tonks guessed was about a century out of date. After the door finally stopped, the man's eyes opened up and Tonks had to gasp again.

They were lifeless eyes. Tonks couldn't help but think of the Muggle expression of the lights being on but no one being home. The man slowly made his way to the chair and sat down facing her. Her senses were screaming to her that this man was some sort of abomination but couldn't tell her how.

Tonks looked up to Arcturus, "Is this some sort of Inferi?"

A few of the portraits chuckled while Arcturus actually smiled, "Not exactly but probably a closer to the answer than you might think. The body is that of Caleb Atlas Black who, sadly, ran afoul of a Dementor back in 1704."

Tonks hissed and couldn't help but pull back against her seat, "He was kissed? How is he still alive? And for Merlin's sake why?"

"He has been kept alive by a simple stasis spell. Since he was kissed, Caleb is taken out of stasis only periodically. Luckily I was nearby when it happened and brought my nephew here so it could be prepared before the normal deterioration could set in," said a portrait to her right. "While his soul is gone, a simple sustainment potion keeps the body healthy. Eventually it will die but careful use may delay this for another century or more."

Tonks continued to stare at her ancestor who stared back with a blank look which so devoid of emotion it was like the face had lost the ability to move. "And the why?"

There was a thrum of magic in the room. Tonks almost yelped in surprise when Caleb took a gasping breath and those lifeless eyes seem to spark. Indeed the face suddenly became animated with a gamut of expression playing on it for a few moments.

"The why is it allows us to become House Black."

Tonks gaped at this. The voice seemed to be a collection of voices molded into one. She looked up and saw all the portraits and gone still. She looked back at Caleb to see it smiling at her and even raised a quirky eye-brow at her.

"In this body, we are House Black. All of us. Every portrait save a few like mad Walpurga downstairs come together. All of memories are pooled. Everything we knew when we were painted and everything we have seen since. All is available to us. In this body, we can think, we can feel, and _we can plan_." Caleb said.

Tonks shut her mouth. It wouldn't do to continuing gaping like an idiot. "What should I call you? Caleb doesn't seem right."

"You can simply call us Black." This was said after with a laugh that sent chills down her spine.

"Well this is amazing! I can see why you wanted my oath. Merlin! If any of the other Houses knew of this, well they'd, they'd…I'm not sure what they'd do but I'm sure they would freak out," Tonks said as the implications started to hit her. There were a lot of portraits of famous Blacks throughout Magical Britain. Many of them in very important places in the Ministry to Dumbledore's office at Hogwarts.

It was an article of faith that portraits could not relate what they had seen given how most public portraits were spelled in such a way as a loyalty oath when first hung. Yet House Black had found a way around that spell. Tonks figured that by combining all the impressions into one cut the individual memories off from whatever loyalty spell might be associated with the portrait where the memory came from. It was brilliant and explained why House Black always seemed to know what was going on.

Tonks frowned at this as a thought struck her.

"You're wondering how House Black has been brought so low when we obviously have our ears everywhere, yes?" Black asked with a smirk. "Again you do your parents credit with how quickly you come to the heart of matters."

Tonks simply nodded at this.

"The answer is simple. Prophecy. House Black bows to no one but Fate is something we will not fight against. Long ago, a prophecy was made which spoke of the fall of the House Black. This fall would be brutal but it would not be the end. Like a dark phoenix, from the ashes our House would be reborn in a way we could not imagine." Black said as another wave of his (its? His and hers?) hand made a glass filled with wine appear on the nearby table.

Black drank it deeply and sighed, "Not to digress but you cannot imagine being an image of a living being, seeing life going by and not being able to taste it. Certainly the power represented in this body is considerable but oh for just the feeling of breathing, of drinking fine wine again and being alive, if only for a few hours is the most wondrous thing of all. No one ever seems to realize how much a portrait lives in hell. Not alive yet aware enough to know what it is missing."

Tonks frowned at this. She had never thought of it that way. She was reminded of a book she had read awhile ago. In it a young girl had been made into a vampire and after many decades, she hated her body would forever be that of a little girl even as her mind matured. Forever trapped in a girl's body while never knowing what it would feel like to be an adult.

Tonks shook her head of the thought before leaning forward, "Okay so there is a prophecy and given how so few of us Blacks our left, I take it we're pretty much at the bottom. So now what?"

Black's face fell into a smirk she'd see often enough in pictures of Sirius when he was at Hogwarts. "Now we need you to shepherd the Chosen One, the one foretold to bring about the return of fortune not only to our House but that of our another house. A house seemingly the opposite of House Black in every way."

Tonks tried to suppress the shudder at hearing the odd blending of so many voices. It was downright disturbing. "So is this Chose One? Please tell me he's not that brat of my Aunt Cissy."

Black laughed, "Close Nymphadora. You are at least in the right age group but the wrong house. No, all our hopes are represented in you and the wizard you must guide to his destiny. And that wizard's name is Harry, son of James, last heir to the Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter."

Tonks leaned back into her chair as a look of astonishment crossed her face, "Well bugger me sideways!"

**XxXxX**

**THE LEAKY CAULDRON, LONDON – AUGUST 1****st**** 1998 – EVENING**

The room erupted in the clatter of chairs and general conversation after Professor McGonagall stated they were done for the evening. They would meet again in week to venture out into Diagon Alley to get their supplies as well as hit up Gringotts.

Of course Harry had already heard that Justin had hit Lilith up to take him to Gringotts after dinner. Seems the young banker's son wanted to get a jump on how the goblins did business. Unlike human banks, Gringotts didn't have 'banker hours' and thus was open 24 hours a day.

Lilith's brother had come in about fifteen minutes before the end of the presentation. It was obvious who he was just from his looks. Hermione had been interested to hear from Lilith talk about how Magicals tended to look a lot more like their kin than Muggles. Lilith's interest in Magical biology and how it might look relative to science was obvious to everyone listening. Given how everyone was commenting how he looked almost exactly like his dad, Harry could definitely see this effect play out in how much Shaddrach and Lilith were obviously siblings.

Harry was surprised when the man made a bee line for him with an easy smile even if he had a bit of an abashed air about him. Being a Muggleborn, Harry wouldn't think he'd be all star-truck by his notoriety. So he decided to wait and see what was up before rushing to judgement.

"Shaddrach Moon," the wizard said as he offered his hand.

"Harry Potter, as I'm sure you know," Harry replied.

"Oh yes and I'm sorry to say I'm sort of here on business. Doing a favor for a favor if you will," Shaddrach said a bit sheepishly.

"What did you do?" Lilith said as she came up beside her brother.

"I didn't do anything. Just doing a favor for Mr. Creswell," Shaddrach said with the annoyed tone older sibling's use on their younger ones throughout time.

"Creswell? He's one of the lawyers you're interning with, right?" Lilith asked.

Shaddrach nodded and turned back to Harry as he pulled a business card out of his robe pocket. "Again, sorry about this but Mr. Creswell asked me to give you his card. He's a really good guy even if he is a lawyer. He wanted you to have his contact info so you wouldn't just immediately jump to Mr. Tonks."

Harry blinked at this, "Okay Shaddrach...wow that's a bit of a mouthful. Do you have an acceptable nickname or should I just call you Shady since you seem to be going into law?"

Both Lilith and Lisa (who had been waiting next to Harry) laughed at this. Shaddrach looked pained but still was smiling, "Well Shady is better than what my twerp of sister calls me. Most people call me Shad."

"When they're not calling you the Shark," Lilith said with a grin.

Her brother laughed, "Not my fault most purebloods only _think _they have a good poker face."

"Alright Shad the Shark, why is Mr. Creswell interested in me? I mean I've been told I'm famous and all that but what's in it for him?" Harry asked. "And what's this about Mr. Tonks? I just learned I'm sort of related to him but that's about it."

Shaddrach nodded, "Yes I guess he sort of is through his wife. The reason Mr. Creswell wanted to get a foot in the door is the law firm which House Potter traditionally used was wiped out in the war. Right now the properties and businesses are being managed by the goblins. While they do a good job, by contract they are limited to what they can do. Anyway, while Mr. Tonks is also a lawyer, he mostly is involved with personal and criminal law. My boss is hoping you'll give the law offices of Kettleridge, Creswell and Dippet a chance to take up your family business."

Harry looked at the card he'd been given. It actually looked rather normal for a magical business. Shaddrach must have guessed his thoughts, "They also do a lot of work with Muggle business and agencies who either know about the Magical world or interact with them without realizing it. So yeah, their card isn't as flashy as some. There are some ambulance chaser types whose cards are really obnoxious."

Harry put the card in his wallet, "Okay Shad, I'll keep it in mind. I'm sure I'll have a better idea of what I'll need after I talk with the goblins."

Shaddrach grimaced, "Yeah have fun with that."

Harry laughed, "Oh I don't know. I sort of like the goblin we had today. They seem to not want to take shit from people. I'm cool with that."

Shaddrach shrugged, "True but dealing with their snide comments can get a bit tiresome even when they like you."

Lilith nudged her brother, "My stomach is inching its way across my intestines. My appendix is in imminent danger! Feed me know!"

Harry chuckled at this, "Is Shad coming tonight?"

Lilith shook her head, "As much as I'm sure the Shadster would like to do a little clubbing, he's a busy boy and has to get up early."

"Too bloody early. I might as well be on a Quidditch team!" Shaddrach said with a scowl.

Harry turned to Lisa to find Hermione had finished packing up her books and was listening in, "So we're still a go to meet up tonight? At nine?"

Both girls nodded. "I'm taking her over to my dad's apartment to hang out after we eat. Do you want to meet us there or just meet at the club?" Hermione asked.

Harry thought about it for a second, "You don't mind me inviting Paul?"

Both Lisa and Hermione looked a bit unsure but Lilith just chuckled, "Oh don't be such society girls. Harry will protect us from the scary boy. He is armed you know."

"I'll have you know _**my **_knife is longer than his," Paul said quietly from behind Harry.

"Paul, Paul, Paul. I think it's a bit early in our relationship to be comparing sizes," Harry quipped. "Besides it's not the length of the blade but how you wield it."

All the girls groaned at this even as Shaddrach laughed.

Harry noticed Tonks had finished talking to Shacklebolt and looking his way. The older Auror was already walking out the door with Dean Thomas. While Harry was disappointed Dean wasn't joining them, he understood completely about waiting to learn more about a relative the boy never knew he had.

"Hey guys, I've got to go; Tonks looks like she's getting antsy. I'll meet you at your Dad's place. Figure we might end up there on the fifteenth for the next orientation so might as well see where it is," Harry said.

"You're a lucky bastard having a date with Tonks," Shaddrach said. "A lot of us 'Puffs had a crush on her before she graduated."

Harry made a face, "She's my cousin. Besides it's not a date; I want to learn more about my relatives I didn't know I had."

Shaddrach just wiggled his eyebrows, "From a pureblood point of view, you're not _**that**_ related. Besides I'd jump to be a kissing cousin with her."

Lilith whacked her brother's arm, "You pervert. Come on Shadster, let's go eat!"

Harry turn back to Lisa, Hermione and Paul, "See you guys later."

The group broke up with everyone saying their good-byes. Harry strolled over to where the young auror was waiting for him. With a bit of a smirk, Harry asked, "Nymphadora Tonks I presume?" Harry had to admit he saw where Shaddrach was coming from. His cousin was _**very**_ easy on the eyes.

As expected she scowled, "You just had to go there didn't you? So much for Hufflepuff loyalty. My old Head of House just threw me under the Knight Bus!"

Before Harry could try to speak, Tonks suddenly grinned, "Okay that's your freebie. Don't make a habit of it, Harry!"

Harry grinned back. It was nice that he'd finally met a relative who he could stand, "Wouldn't think of it. As Professor Sprout warned, I'm not sure I want to find out what an honors student in Transfiguration can do."

Tonks beamed with pride, "Words to live by! Let's go grab us up some dinner. We have _**a lot**_ to talk about."

**XxXxX**

**Chapter Six Preview**: Harry and Tonks have a chat even as we continue the flashbacks to find out what is going on before he heads out to go clubbing.

**XxXxX**

**A/N**: Sorry this is delayed. My PTSD therapy is proceeding and going well. I'm going to try and finish one chapter a week of this. Right now that goal is my short term one to get me going well enough to switch to one chapter a week of my stories in rotation.

11

**The Forever Girl**: The book Tonks was thinking about was _Interview with a Vampire_ with the vampire girl in question being Claudia, Kirsten Dunst big breaking-out role. While I didn't think Tom Cruise made a good Lestat in the way of looks, I think both he and Brad Pitt pulled off the semi-homoerotic vibe present in the book. If anything, I think Tom Cruise was good for the Lestat from _IwaV_ and not the "actual" Lestat we see in _The Vampire Lestat_. He certainly had the callous cruelty thing down pat. 


End file.
